Earth: Population Overload
by Pete the Rock
Summary: Sequel to Population Zero. Ash is invited to join a Christmas party by Yolei and Kari. And that's when trouble rears an ugly head as he joins the rest of the Digidestined to rid the overload of Digimon worldwide.
1. Reminder & Invitation

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon or Digimon

Summary: Sequel to Population Zero. Ash is invited to join a Christmas party by Yolei and Kari. And that's when trouble rears an ugly head as he joins the rest of the Digidestined to rid the overload of Digimon worldwide.

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_**Earth: Population Overload**_

_Chapter 1: Reminder & Invitation

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_A black tower stood over a landscape, trees and grass surrounding... "Blast Rings!" someone shouted. Blast ri- KABOOM! A huge explosion ripped into the tower before it fell. Never mind. Oh, there's another tower not too far from the first.

"Tail Hammer!" another bellowed. Tail...what? BANG! A crash of something and that tower crumbled. What's going on? Not too far from those fallen eyesores, a whole sea of black towers stood erected. Why were there so many-

"V-Laser!" one more yelled. BOOM! Another tower fell.

"Spiking Strike!" another roared. SLASH! That tower spilled.

"Rosetta Stone!" a female chanted. KABANG! One more tower dove in defeat.

"Star Shower!" one more summoned. BA-BA-BANG! Down went one more.

"Okay, Butterfree," another female called. "Air Cutter!" Air Cutter? KABLAM! And one more bit the dust. Finally, the smoke cleared. There was a group of kids with various creatures. There was a brunette young man sporting an Afro entered the room, prompting the creatures to awaken. The young man wore a blue jacket which had a cool flame decal, goggles and light-brown shorts. There was a blond haired boy in a green long sleeve shirt, gray cargo shorts, and an ivory fishing cap. Another was a brunette haired girl in a pink and white striped sleeveless shirt, skinny yellow shorts and full-arm pink gloves. Then there was a lavender-haired girl in a leather helmet and glasses who wore an aviator's outfit. There was another brunette boy who wore a light brown sweatshirt. One more was a violet-haired male who had like a gray jumpsuit on. Well, his wardrobe was just plain gray. Who else was in the scene? There was a giant blue winged creature which had a giant X on its chest. Another was a giant green man/fly mixture of a creature. There was also an orange thoroughbred with golden cuffs on each hoof, and a golden helmet. The gold wings came out of armor that was strapped to the under belly of the majestic beast. One more was a giant red bird with crooked horns sticking from it's white head. There was also an illuminating white sphinx-like creature with the angel wings on her back. That had a similar head dress, a human-like face and cat-like paws. One more was a giant yellow spike-shelled creature with a mace ball on the tail. Oh, yeah, nearly forgot a bluish butterfly-type creature. The group was in celebration after taking out some of those towers. As the celebration continued, the bigger brunette noticed that the violet-haired member was a yard away from the rest.

"Ken, what's up?" the brunette called as he ran with a much smaller blue imp. Ken, who had a green worm by his side, began to pull green cards from his pocket. The brunette spotted the cards, thinking it was something special. "Hey, whatcha got there?" Ken was fidgeting badly. Wait...those cards have bell stickers. To the brunette, it appeared to be invitations to a special party. "Hey, guys! Ken's got something for us!" The rest, including an orange winged piglet, a yellow armadillo, a smaller red bird with a feather attached by a black belt and a white cat with claw gauntlets got intrigued to see what Ken brought with him.

'Thanks a lot, Davis,' muttered Ken in thought. The rest surrounded Ken, wondering what he had to offer. If Ken wasn't nervous before, he sure was now. "I, uh...request that you can...uh, attend a holiday celebration at...uh, my home and..."

"Say no more, Ken," the blond happily agreed without a second thought. "You're having a Christmas party. Of course, we'll join your bash." Ken couldn't be happier. The girls were excited about this party.

"Hey, Ken?" the imp wondered. "Can we come?" Ken chuckled at the request of such a small creature.

"Of course, Veemon," he allowed. Everyone laughed, accepting the invite. That's when the lavender-haired female thought hard, catching Davis' attention.

"Yolei, you're thinking pretty deeply," he noticed. Yolei snapped out of her deep thought and turned to Davis.

"I was thinking about an extra invite," she explained. "Of course, I wonder if he has time right now?" Not one had an idea on what she was trying to say...except the brunette female.

"What makes you think he's back at Pallet Town?" she argued, not sure if whoever the extra was would come by. Ken was more baffled with that detail. He was the only one. Davis was getting a tad steamed with who Yolei elected.

"I don't think so, Yolei!" he barked. "Knowing how close he came to Kari, I'd throw away that invitation on the spot!" Ken was still clouded with who Davis, Kari and Yolei were arguing about.

"What's this all about?" Ken interrupted. Realizing the confusion on Ken's mind, the brunette female, joined by the cat and butterfly, dragged Ken a short distance away. Backlash had Davis spotting the pair and getting upset.

"Ken, you get back here with Kari, this instant!" Yolei, shut him up. BONG! Yolei smacked Davis with an overhead punch to the crown. Thank you!

"Davis!" she snapped. Okay, back to where Ken and Kari were.

"Who were you guys meaning?" he asked again. Kari was ready to talk.

"You see, there was someone Yolei and I got to know pretty close," she hinted. Pretty close? "There's that cave which connects the DigiWorld with a world where Butterfree came from." Was that the butterfly?

"It's also where I met and tickled Kari, not to mention use String Shot on Ash and wrap him in a cocoon," the butterfly admitted in a squeaky light tone. Ash?

"Who, now?" Ken blankly questioned. Kari breathed and was ready to continue.

"Last I saw him, he was traveling through his region," she proceeded. "He's competing in the Battle Frontier and I'm not sure he's back home yet. He's a real nice guy. Of course, that comparing him to Davis." Like not getting angry at who came around? Ken thought inviting this guy wasn't a bad thought.

"He sounds like a peaceful young man. Why not we pay him a visit and see if likes to come with?" Not a bad idea. Kari agreed and both returned to the group but mainly Yolei. The other boys were wondering what Ken and Kari were doing away for that moment and why they crowded Yolei. Kari and Ken discussed heading to the area with Yolei who seemed really excited.

"I knew you'd guys see things my way," she huffed a glee. "Let's get going." Plans were set. Kari looked toward the males, wanting to advise them of their next voyage.

"Davis, TK, Cody, we'll be back," she mentioned. "We're running an errand out." Already, Davis realized that the three were going to see Ash. He wasn't about to excuse the three so fast.

"Oh no you don't!" he growled. Yolei was getting pretty flustered by Davis' denial. "You're not bringing Ash over here and that's that!" The more Davis denied allowance, the more heated Yolei burned...until a brainstorm.

"Are you afraid that Jun would go after Ash?" she pondered. "She does like cute boys like Tai and Matt." It never dawned on Davis that maybe his sister may have him. Then again, who knew, other than Yolei that Davis _had_ a sister? "That way, Ash would be too distracted to go after Kari." That was her game plan? Tease Davis? Davis thought about the possibility of Yolei's theory and the opening that was left.

"I don't know. She does go after the cute ones...but more or less older than her. I'd think he'd be a better match for either Sora or Mimi." More women, more offers...whoever Ash was, he's got a lot of women in Davis' mind.

"I think you're still upset about when his town was empty and you wanted to send Yolei over to side with Kari and have Ash tease you about letting yourself not go after her yourself," the blond remembered. Davis gasped. What kind of detail was this? Yolei laughed at the retort.

"I remembered that, TK," she scoffed. "Davis saying, 'See? This guy's no idiot. He's safe in our hands.' Ash then going, 'And on the other hand, it'll at least keep Davis away from Kari.' You opened yourself up for that one-liner." That was some good acting on Yolei's part. Davis fluttered out a heavy sigh, not appreciating the moment. "We'll be back." On that, Ken, Kari and Yolei ran off, ditching the other men...and an angered Davis ready to go on the warpath. An hour passed when the three arrived at a cavern. Was this the link to their destination.

"It's been a while since being through that hole," the bird beaked. "I bet Ash had forgotten all about us." Yolei hoped not.

"Don't be so melodramatic, Hawkmon. He'll still remember you and Gatomon." From the name, Gatomon had to be the cat, right? The group, including the cat, worm and butterfly entered...and exited out the other side. It was the same sunny atmosphere as back where they were. The group got to their feet with Yolei dramatically changing, outfit wise. She was wearing a blue bandanna, a magenta button-down t-shirt over a blue blouse and a magenta long skirt.

"It's great to be back here, right, Butterfree?" Kari smiled at her butterfly.

("It is,") Butterfree...squeaked? Wait...it was able to talk like the rest before entering the cave. Why did it change so fast? Ken looked over to a wooden sign a few feet away.

PALLET TOWN, POPULATION: 852

This had to be what Yolei spoke about...and the town was lively. No one's missing, right? "So, this is where that Ash-fellow is?" the worm wondered. Well, the worm was okay with it's speaking...if you could consider it normal.

"Let's head into town," Yolei suggested. Why not? The group walked into the town limits...and look, another brunette female. Well, she was more of a grown woman, more grown than Yolei. No offense to her. At a white house, the brunette in a straw hat, pink blouse and jeans was working on a garden full of vegetables with what appeared to be a clown. It seriously looked like a clown.

"Delia!" Kari called out. The new brunette heard the calling, peering up and seeing the kids come by. Needless to say how happy she was to see the group.

"Kari, Yolei, how are you doing?" she greeted with glee. "Did you come by to visit Ash?" Whoa...anyone say sharp as a tack?

"Yeah, pretty much," Yolei stuttered a bit. Delia stood up and noticed Ken and the worm. Yolei chose to introduce. "Delia, this is Ken Ichijoji, a good friend from our world and his Digimon, Wormmon." Ken rose a hand and Delia shook it, a good sign that they may get along well.

"It's nice to meet you, Kenneth."

"It's a pleasure, De-" Ken stopped before. "Mrs. Ketchum." Delia didn't mind that little hiccup. Not one bit.

"Ash should be back soon. He hopped on over to Prof. Oak's lab. He does that when he returns from an adventure." So Ash was home. Sweet. Remembering that he was on that trip around to compete in the Battle Frontier.

"How did he do?" Yolei wondered. What's the news? Delia presented a plaque with seven gold coins with different symbols on each. Kari remembered something from a previous time.

"He beat 'em all," she cheered. "I knew he could do it." Not bad, Ash.

"He did say Pyramid Brain Brandon was a pain but he persevered and won," Delia explained. "He was offered to run his own Frontier stadium but knowing my son, he decided to move on and try a different region. He has such restless energy." Never in one place for a long time.

"Apparently." The girls shared a resounding chuckle.

("Kari!") a mouse called. ("Yolei!") Someone knew who was there. The group turned to a raven-haired male with a blue sweat-tee on along with jeans. Not to mention his yellow lightning-shaped tailed mouse hanging on his shoulder.

"Mom, you never told me you had a party for my completing the Battle Frontier," he gawked. Kari and Yolei were surprised to see...

"Ash!" they cheered and ran over to the other male. Ash was excited to see the girls once more. Yolei even had the urge to give the raven-haired a suffocating bear hug.

"Yolei, Kari, this is sudden." Any harder and Ash's ribs would crack. "Nice...to see you too." And he would've had a harder time breathing.

"Yolei, don't knock him out again," Kari complained, allowing Yolei to break her grip. She was wanting to hold Ash for quite a while. And she got to.

"What's up? Why are you stopping by?" Someone break the ice.

"Well, we're having a party with the rest of the Digidestined and I thought you should be brought up as well," Yolei detailed. "It's a Christmas party. I thought it would be nice to hear of your adventures since the beginning." Nice adding. Ash slapped his head in shear lack. Did he know Christmas was around the corner?

"I've been so busy with my Pokémon, I lost track of time." Short answer: no. "If I knew, I would've picked up something for mom or Prof. Oak. It also doesn't help that it hardly snows in Pallet." The girls giggled, understanding Ash's frustration.

"Ash, it's just like you to lapse like that," the cat meowed. All Ash could do was scratch the back of his neck.

"Come on, Gatomon. I'm not that bad." He's a busy boy. That's when Ken stepped forward, ready to introduce himself.

"So, you're Ash," he voiced as he stuck a hand out. Ash remembered something about Ken. He seemed to be okay.

"You must be Ken. Hey." Both shook hands. This was good.

"Look, sorry about before. Something inside me took over my mind and-"

"It's alright. We don't need to worry about it." Really good. Delia couldn't help but smile. Finally, Ash turned to his buddy. "So, Pikachu, what do you say? Stop over and see the others?" Pikachu wasn't about to skip a moment of seeing the DigiWorld.

"Who knows," Kari spoke up. "You can also go shopping for everyone. There are shopping districts in Odaiba you can skip around." A perfect addition. Ash was more than ready to go and see the rest.

"How soon will you be back, Ash?" Delia wondered. Ash was ready to go and check out a new region. It can wait.

"Probably tomorrow," Ash guessed. "Sinnoh can wait." Probably he says. Knowing him, trouble was around the corner. Delia wanted to keep Ash here. He was her child. However, he seemed to be promising a gift for Christmas.

"Okay, have a good time." With that notion, the group took off, ready to join the rest of the Digidestined. This should be an easy case. No trouble, right?

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TO BE CONTINUED...


	2. America & Shopping

_Chapter 2: America & Shopping

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_After completing the Ballet Frontier, Ash and Pikachu needed some time to rest and relax. Then again, Ash was never like that. He was on his next adventure the moment the last one ended. It was Christmas time and he was invited to party with the Digidestined. He and Pikachu had crossed through the tunnel with Ken, Kari, Yolei and the Digimon into the DigiWorld. For the seasoned trainer, this felt missed. "Remind me when I complete my next region to stop here," Ash scoffed. "I'll keep forgetting the feeling." Pikachu giggled from the notion.

"Well, let's bring Brock next time or maybe Forrest," he suggested...while speaking human? It was like Kari's Butterfree. "But let's keep the Tauros from here. Knowing them, they'd tear the trees from the roots." Okay, no Tauros. Ken, meeting Ash for the first time, wondered what Ash and Pikachu were offering.

"You make it sound like you've got a lot of Pokémon," he pondered. Did Ash?

"Well, it's a good bunch compared to Gary's count," he sighed. Was that jealousy?

"I heard that you were offered to have a place where you could host your own Frontier Brain or Gym Battle in Pallet," Yolei remembered. "I mean, I would've liked you to have one and that way we could visit you more often. Why not?" Ash had a reason, right? He was offered a place where he would host his own battles to earn a badge or symbol. Why would he turn it down?

"There are more Pokémon that I want to capture and train, as well as new Gyms and a new Pokémon League that I was anxious to try out." Just like Delia said...

"If there was something that could keep you from traveling, what would that be?" Gatomon wondered. That was a good question. Ash thought about it. Maybe it never occurred that there may be an end. "Let's not say when you die, alright?"

"Gatomon!" Kari gasped. There's a good bet the word "die" or anything related were items she frowned upon.

"What? He's got a lot to look forward to, right?" Ash thought harder. Could there be something that could stop his career as a trainer?

"That's the hardest question that I could be asked," he confessed. "I guess...love for a girl to the point of marriage." Love? That's kind of simplistic. Pikachu doubted the answer. He believed Ash was loved long before and hadn't stopped him.

"Oh really," he snorted. "What about back on Shamouti Island when Melody kissed you? Or Bianca on Alto Mare?" Ash was a hotshot with the females.

"First off, Pikachu, Melody gave me a 'Welcome Kiss,' and you may say that it was Bianca who got me in the same cheek but let's not go that far." Their argument was so blatant, Hawkmon had to intervene at some point.

"Boy, don't you two need to calm down," it beaked in a sigh. "It was just a question Yolei asked. You don't need to go overboard." Ash and Pikachu ceased their jabbering on each other.

"Hey!" sounded Davis. Hearing, the group spotted Davis, TK and the young boy. They also had Veemon, the armadillo, the winged piglet and some others. There was a pink bird with blue outlines, a white sea lion, a walking weed-like green creature with a flower for hair, a yellow horned creature wearing a wolf pelt, an orange T-Rex and a flying magenta mecha-like bug with green eyes.

"We're back," Kari greeted. That's good.

"Davis, Cody, TK," Ash listed. "What's up?" Davis saw Ash, flood gates reopening.

"We're doing fabulous, Ash," TK answered with a smile. "Merry Christmas, by the way." That was nice to say. All Davis could do was huff at the raven-haired.

"So, I take it you got passed the Battle Frontier?" he pondered. Ash was a touch surprised. News got around fast.

"Okay, who gave you the cliff notes?" Ash huffed. No one, but Davis knew it.

"So, did you come because Ken invited you as well?" Cody wondered. If not, then it was just a visit.

"Yolei and Kari did, but yeah." That's when he and Pikachu took note of the extra company.

"So, anyway," Pikachu spoke up. "Who do we have here?" They had to be other Digimon.

"While you guys were picking Ash up," TK responded. "We rounded up a few of the first generation Digimon." Really? First generation? Then what did that make this group?

"You mean before you guys?" Ash gulped. The bug zipped a little forward, wanting to meet Ash and Pikachu.

"Well, technically," it buzzed. "TK, Kari, Patamon and Gatomon were also members of the first generation Digidestined." Ah, the information began to help Ash. "I'm Tentomon, Izzy's partner." Izzy? Ash remembered Izzy.

"Oh yeah, I know Izzy. He helped me during the first time through. Of course, Sora and Tai helped as well." Sora? Tai? The bird and dinosaur gasped when they heard the names called out.

"You know Tai and Sora?" the dinosaur repeated. "Biyomon and I were their partners!" The bird acknowledged the information, meaning that it's Biyomon. Ash was starting.

"Yeah, back then. I was searching for my mother and neighbors when they disappeared from my home in Pallet. And yes, Izzy aided me as well." The dinosaur seemed pleased with what had occurred before. "Of course, Yolei and Kari became my partners after Yolei put me to sleep in that choke hold." Davis was showing a little steam. It was as if Ash got off lucky.

"That's not fair!" he scorned. "I was body slammed by that brunette friend of yours after you left for the Mirage Kingdom with the two." Proof found. Ash did get off easy.

"May did claim that you had bad mouthed me and she took it in her defense to pile drive you. Just be lucky she's in Johto." Davis sighed, defeated by the hotshot trainer. "By the way, what about the rest?" Who else was amongst the first generation?

"Well, I'm Agumon," the dinosaur claimed before turning to the creature with the pelt. "That's Gabumon, Matt's partner." Next was the sea lion. "That's Gomamon, Joe's partner who you'll be seeing soon." Lastly was the weed creature. "And that's Palmon, Mimi's partner who's in New York." New York? That's a new place.

"You see, we're gonna present the Digimon with the partners back on Earth," the piglet squeaked. How sweet, a Digidestined/Digimon reunion.

"Awesome, Patamon," Ash praised. That's when he thought to Palmon. Mimi was in New York. "But how can you get Palmon to Mimi? Agumon said that she's in New York and I have no clue where New York is." It may be because Ash hadn't spent enough time on this Earth to wonder about where a place like New York could be. Even Davis had sympathy for him.

"I don't blame you," he smiled. "You're probably too occupied with your journeys and Pokémon training to know where a few places on Earth could be." Ash wasn't about to argue. Davis was right. He was busy with the Battle Frontier to begin with. A short while later, there was a sac, a TV monitor and Palmon in a sack. The monitor had a land where it was labeled "USA" in the middle of the land. There was a marker along the northeast portion of the land.

"I'm locked onto Mimi's computer," Yolei announced. "We should be able to transport Palmon easily." Ash had seen how they went through the monitor. Palmon had something else before she was sent to meet Mimi.

"Well, Ash," she spoke out. "I do wish you had a chance to see Mimi." Ash wasn't really worried about it.

"I still might," Ash huffed a good possibility. Palmon hoped so. Yolei presented a small white device with a red rubber handle. Was that their key?

"Okay, here we go!" Yolei announced as stuck her device at the monitor. "Digiport Open!" A flash illuminated the area for a few seconds. Once it dimmed, Palmon was gone. After a wait, a new map appeared on the screen. It was shaped like the "j" on some sort of text. "Is everyone ready?" All were geared up and ready to move out. "Okay! Digiport open!" One more flash and everyone was gone...only to reemerge in a room full of computers...and in a pile of twisted bodies. Guess it didn't help when you have multiple additions to the party. Getting untangled, the kids seemed to be alright once on their feet. So now that there were more Digimon than kids, how were they going to take them to the rightful owners?

"Well, Matt's setting up for his gig tonight," TK coughed. "I could take Gabumon to see him." TK had his plans set on seeing this Matt.

"Yeah, that Teenage Wolves Holiday Rock special in downtown," Davis remembered. "Jun had been going on and on about seeing him perform that she gave me a massive headache, only rivaled by May's suplex." Teenage Wolves? Sounded like a teen pop group. "Hey, better you than me, BK." Davis, that's not his name.

"You're still bitter about being teamed with TK, aren't you?" Ash teased. "You still have Ken and Cody to keep you calm, right?" Davis could argue that Ash had sided with TK...but did sigh that there were others to ease Davis' frustration.

"Yeah, and let's not forget Veemon as well." Veemon bobbed a nod, supporting the Afro brunette. Cody had peered outside. A scattered blanket of white snow had covered the roofs of building sought. Snow hills and coated sidewalks told the youngest that it was cold.

"It's not Ice Bowl material," he murmured. "But it'll be safe when we bundle up." Good point. Who would want to go out into the cold in minimal wear?

"Ash, you didn't bring a coat with you, right?" Kari noticed. Ash was exposed. Scratching the back of his head, he had to wonder how he botched that moment up.

"Guess I got so excited about seeing you guys again, I..." he fumbled for an answer. That's when Yolei placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Knowing him, he could keep Pikachu warm inside his sweat-tee," she figured. Not enough to warrant that Ash was okay with what he wore. Davis was a bit steamed with how Ash was being "pampered" by the girls.

"Maybe discovering the Pokémon World was the worst idea to make," he growled. "You've got Kari and Yolei swarming all over you! What's your secret?!" Secret? Ash had a secret to his achievement of getting women?

"Davis, Kari and Yolei gave me sympathy and hope when Pallet Town was emptied out," he backtracked. "Is it my fault that Kari kissed me when I was unconscious from Yolei's sleeper?" It sounded like Ash had no involvement in arousing women. "Besides, if you want to look for ways to impress women, go to Pewter City and seek Brock." That's got to be his secret. This Brock... "Of course, that's giving him more credit than he deserves." Or not.

"Anyway, I think I saw a coat in the 'Lost and Found' box we can borrow," Yolei suggested. "Let's go and deliver the Digimon." Going by that idea, the group with the Digimon headed outside. Ash had a black heavy coat on while Pikachu rested inside, his head sticking out between the zipper. TK, Patamon and Gabumon had broken away to look for Matt. Ash, Davis, Kari and Cody, with Pikachu and the Digimon arrived at a park, waiting for the others. Kari had another device which she was checking. This device was a bit bigger than the one which got the group here which looked like a silver hand-held gaming system. Kari was in a pink coat which lengthened to her knees and wearing a white beret. Everyone else wore different colored heavy coats.

"They should be here soon," she studied from her device. They, meaning the Digidestined?

"Hey!" an older male shouted. The group turned to the noise...viewing another group of teenagers. A wild brunette male in a heavy blue coat, a short-haired redhead female in a red coat, a spiky redhead male in a green sweater and a blue-haired male in glasses wearing a white trench coat showed up. The meeting was a good thing. The redhead female recognized Ash and Pikachu, knowing that this was about to get exciting.

"Ash, you're a real surprise," she awed. "What, your town's been abandoned again?" If only...

"No, everyone in Pallet Town's there, Sora," Ash corrected. "It's for a different reason, something more relaxed than finding missing townspeople." To say the least.

"What's so relaxing about last minute Christmas shopping?" the brunette questioned. Boy, he didn't know the half of it.

"He did say it's easier to handle than when Pallet Town had been evacuated all that time before," Cody referred to back those months ago. Kari sighed, almost humiliated by the slow thinking of the brunette.

"Tai, you haven't changed gears since we invited Ash to stay the night," she mumbled. "By the way, we managed to grab a few presents for you each." On cue, Ash unraveled the bag. Once opened, the Digimon leaped out, embracing the teens. Agumon held onto Tai, Biyomon onto Sora, Tentomon onto the other redhead meaning he was Izzy and Gomamon onto the blue-haired to signify Joe.

"Agumon!" You could tell how exuberant Tai was to hold Agumon. Heck, the same could be said about Joe, Izzy and Sora.

"How did you know what I wanted?" Sora cheered.

"Oh, you know," Davis slyly shuttered. "A little Biyomon told me." Ash and Kari knew that he lied about that notion. The fact that presenting the partners back together was a real treat to see.

"If you're gonna try to lie, Davis," Ash scoffed. "Try something from my world like a Pidgey or a Taillow that gave you the idea. At least be original." Like Davis knew Pokémon like you did? Kari laughed while Davis grumbled from the mocking.

"Believe me, he doesn't need a kiss to prompt that," Kari teased. After a moment to straighten out, Izzy had to ask the $64 million question to Ash.

"So, I take it you're going to Ken's little get together?" he asked. He knew it. Ash remembered Izzy to be smart so this was no exception.

"That's right," he replied. "But first, I gotta do some shopping for my mom, Prof. Oak, Tracy..." Getting the idea, Izzy wove his hand, saying that's enough. No more, he's already got a lot in his head. Cody turned to Ash, seeing if he needed help...or wanting to shop for a few people himself.

"Is it alright if I accompany you?" he wished. "I wanted to do some shopping for grandpa and my mother as well. Besides, I think I know what to get your mother." That was a really nice offer. Ash saw nothing wrong with having someone with him while shopping.

"Hey, you bet." Cody smiled, though it appeared halfhearted. Was there a lot on his mind. The group split into their individual groups. At a shopping district, Ash and Cody were viewing some kitchen appliances. One appeared to catch Ash's eyes. A white juicer. "There we go!"

("That's perfect for mom,") Pikachu agreed. Ash lifted the lightweight box, feeling the size of the contents.

"Knowing mom, she may come up with a few berry juice concoctions. I wonder what kind of mix may come with a sitrus and pinkan berry?" He had a visualization of Delia using what looked like a lime green pear and a pink cherry, peeling off the skin and tossing it into the juicer. A pink liquid came out of the faucet and into a glass where she sampled it. That's when Delia was in heaven...and pink from the juice she tasted. Seriously, she was pink on her skin. PUFF! Visualization ceased...and Ash freaked out from that scene in his head "I've heard of hot moms, not hot _pink_ moms." That's creepy. Cody had to peer at Ash, not sure how to take that response.

"Do I want to know what you're thinking about?" he murmured. Ash shook his head to stave from the clouds.

"I was wondering what my mom would use to mix into a juicer with the berries that she could be growing." That intrigued Cody.

"Oh really? That doesn't sound so bad. Maybe she could create a juice to stave off aging." That's a possibility. That's when Pikachu looked over to a side. He spotted Sora and Biyomon. In her hand...tickets!

("Is Sora scared?") it squeaked. The two and the armadillo turned to Pikachu, then to the other two. Sora had the look of sheer nervousness. Something was bugging her and it wasn't Tentomon. The boys walked over to check Sora's welfare.

"Sora?" Ash called. Sora heard Ash, snapping out of her delusions. Biyomon turned to see the boys as well. "What's up?" Sora became hesitant. Was it the tickets? They seem to be for some event. Finally, Biyomon was there to speak.

"You see, Sora purchased tickets to Matt's concert tonight and wanted to ask Tai if he would be able to join," it beaked. Sora was expose but everything was covered.

"Biyomon!" she snapped. You could tell from her reaction that she had a fear. Cat out of the bag, not Gatomon, Sora surrendered and came forward. "I know that I've been supporting Matt's musical career. I want to bring Tai but...I don't know if inviting him is a good idea." What repercussions was she willing to dodge? Finally, Ash placed a hand on her shoulder, advising her that it's alright.

"I doubt that this is the time to be afraid," he explained. "Go ahead and ask. What's there to lose?" Not a wise thing to point out. Sora bit her icing lip. Could there be another reason?

"Well, what if Tai's already invited Jun? Izzy, Joe...they're not interested in Matt's type of music." She's already fearing that Tai already had a date to see Matt.

"What did I just say? He's coming this way." This wasn't a joke as Ash pointed to Tai and Agumon approaching them. Seeing the group, Tai waived to them.

"What's up, you guys?" he greeted. Other than Sora's nerving fears...

"Well, I found something for my mom. All I need is something for the rest." ...And that...

"Um, Tai?" Sora hiccuped. Tai turned to Sora. This was her big moment. Now or never.

"Sora?" he hushed. That's when he spotted the tickets. Sora was not getting the words out. "Are those for tonight's concert?" Sora still kept the quiet...for so long. Ash hoped she would just spill it.

"Is, uh...Jun invited you to it?" Tai seemed stunned. Was he expecting Jun? That's when he finally got the message.

"You're wanting to ask me out to tonight's gig. Of course I'll go." Sorry, Jun. Way to go, Sora. Consider it a date.

"Thanks a lot, Tai." She beamed a smile where Tai would breathed a sigh of relief. Ash fist pumped in triumph. That's when Sora eyed Pikachu. What's this? "Say, Ash. Is it alright if Pikachu could join us?" Ash was a bit shocked. Pikachu was a bit awed that he was invited.

"What do you say, buddy?" Ash offered. "Go and see what Matt plays?" He could go with Ash to Ken's party and see if he could catch Gatomon under the mistletoe or go with Tai and Sora. He chose. He leaped into Sora's arms. Concert bound! Sora smiled greatly at the Pokémon joining her and Tai. "Okay, Pikachu. You behave."

("10-4, good buddy,") he promised. With that, Ash and Cody resumed their shopping while Tai, Sora, Pikachu and the Digimon headed off to Matt's musical. So now with the holidays, peace would be maintained...or would it?

* * *

TO BE CONTINUED...


	3. Rockin' & InSPIREing

_Chapter 3: Rockin' & InSPIREing

* * *

_

Crowds were lined up to see the Teenage Wolves. Tai, Sora, Agumon, Biyomon and Pikachu arranged themselves to view the event as well. "By the way, how did you get the tickets?" Tai wondered. Simple, Einstein, she bought them.

"You'll have to thank Matt for arranging this," she replied. "He knew that I would attend and told me that I had to beat Jun from asking you." Well, that wasn't expected. Sora got the VIP treatment. "I guess Ash and Cody were in the right place at the right time to help me through." Tai huffed a giggle, believing that she was a wreck when it came to asking him out.

"Well, you did say the right words to convince Tai, right?" Biyomon joked. Tai and Pikachu chuckled at the slight tease. Soon enough they arrived at the tent. That's when one grown man spotted the troupe ready to enter.

"Tai!" a man with a bandanna called out. The group turned their attentions to the upcoming adult. "There you are. Matt sent me to find you." Sounded like Matt was a bit nervous himself. But for what?

"Oh, really?" Tai hiccuped. "Are you escorting us backstage?" The bandanna man nodded before leading the group to the locker rooms in the back of the tent. Meanwhile, Ash, Cody and the lone armadillo arrived at an apartment complex. A knock on the door opened it, thanks to a brunette mother who was a little more round than Delia.

"Oh, you must be Cody and you're Ash," she identified. Ash had a bag load of presents. Talk about a shopping spree. Did he pick up something for the girls? "Ken and his friends are in his room. Please come in."

"Thank you, Mrs. Ichijouji," Cody politely accepted as he and Ash entered the complex. Soon enough, they entered a bedroom where the rest of the party was and the Digimon.

"You made it!" Kari gleefully cheered. Ash felt like he was one of them: a Digidestined. "So did you get your shopping done?" Ash held the stuffed bag. Yeah, he's done. That's when TK noticed that Pikachu wasn't with Ash.

"Hey, where's Pikachu?" he opened up. "I thought he would be coming. I mean, you two looked inseparable." It's only for one night.

"He's with Tai and Sora over at Matt's concert," he answered. "He'll be fine." Let's hope. It was a nice topic that Yolei wanted to know more about their relationship.

"Now if memory serves me right," she voiced. "You and Pikachu have been together for years with several Gym Badges. You two are pretty much an elite duo, it's like there had been no disagreements to tag along." Ash sighed, knowing the truth further from Yolei's fantasies.

"You have no idea what it was like in the early days and maybe some self guilt to tie it on." Yolei and Kari were a bit awed by what Ash was about to confess. "Then again, I bet you all had a disagreement or two with your Digimon, right?" Davis, Yolei, Kari and Ken gulped a bit, gazing to their Digimon. TK and Cody didn't really have that same reaction.

"Actually, Cody and I never really belittled Patamon and Armadillomon one bit," TK pointed out. "But I've seen Ken really make Wormmon into a useless sidekick when he was the Digimon Emperor. It was worse than when Gatomon first met Kari and doubted they were a team, Veemon criticizing Davis' confidence, Yolei ignoring Hawkmon's trust and Tai and Matt...don't get me started." Was it something in the past? Why would Tai willfully go to see Matt if there was a history between them?

"And I know why I ain't a gambler. Well, it was the first day of my career as a Pokémon trainer. I woke up late after I threw my alarm clock at a wall and got to Prof. Oak's lab in my pajamas. Instead of being there to get either Charmander, Bulbasaur or Squirtle which ended up in other trainers who quit while in the middle, I ended up with Pikachu...and let's say things didn't start out smoothly." From Ash's view of the past, he and Pikachu were not on good terms. How could it be? The way they've been acting, they appeared to be best of friends.

"I would doubt that you two were ever feuding," Kari huffed. "But I haven't been with you when you picked Pikachu." So what was the ordeal that Ash and Pikachu fail to see eye-to-eye?

"Well, Pikachu did not want to go on an adventure with me and he fought back. He was disobedient and refused to enter his Pokéball. But after protecting Pikachu from an upset flock of Spearow, he saw the trust in me and we became partners to which we thought would go forever and that was tested after dealing with a pack of wild Pikachu. I thought that the Pikachu needed a guardian and I was thinking for Pikachu's best. Well, not that I wanna say it backfired. It actually strengthened our bond. Other than a few disagreements, we've been quite a combination." Aw, that was nice. TK, Kari, Ken, Cody, Yolei and the Digimon were pleased with the story. Davis? Not so much.

"I was hoping for...I don't know, a few life-threatening moments," he groaned. What, you think everything has an adrenaline moment?

"You should have been there when Ash battled LadyDevimon," Yolei teased. "That's a life-threatening moment on its own." Kari and Gatomon bobbed nods to say so. Meanwhile back at the concert, a group on stage got done with a hit song, sending the crowd in an uproar of excitement.

"Thank you!" the blond male up front accepted their praise, even from Tai, Sora, Agumon, Biyomon and Pikachu. Pikachu was enjoying the sounds from the group. "How's everyone doing out there?!" More cheers. A happening party. That's when rumbles shook the ground, making the people stop cheering. What's going on?

"This can't be good," Tai wondered. That note sent Pikachu's senses to a new height. KABLAM! A black horned T-Rex smashed through a retaining wall. Behind it, a flock of white ghosts with spiky teeth. They terrorized the crowd and the band.

"DarkTyrannomon and Bakemon!" Sora gasped. Digimon! This wasn't good at all.

"We gotta evacuate the crowd!" Good idea, Tai. He and Sora ran over to the entrance, lifting the flap. The crowd scattered out of the tent and into the streets, the DarkTyrannomon and Bakemon trailing after them. That's when Sora remembered Pikachu.

"Quick, Pikachu! Use your Thunderbolt!"

("Yes, ma'am!") Pikachu squeaked. ("Thunder...bolt!") ZAP! A strong lightning attack from the small body made contact with the Bakemon, a good portion of them falling and covered in electricity. A redhead female with about the same hairstyle as Davis saw the rodent take out a good handful of the ghosts. Then, Tai turned and saw another black tower. He was shocked, even though Pikachu never hit him.

"No way!" he shouted. "A control spire? What's it doing here?!" That was what the Digidestined were tearing down before in the first chapter. Was there a purpose to these control spires?

"Tai, let me digivolve," Agumon ordered. Digivolve?

"That may be impossible, Agumon! There's a control spire here!" It prevents this Digivolving? "Pikachu's the only one we have working but we don't know if he could last and especially against DarkTyrannomon!" Tai was struggling with the limited options available.

"Tai!" the blond vocalist shouted as he came onto the scene with Gabumon. That must mean that he's Matt. "I can't get Gabumon to digivolve!" Tai figured as much. That spire.

"I know! There's a control spire here, not related to Ken!" That's when he remembered the other Digidestined and Ash were at Ken's place. "Matt, call Ken!"

"On it!" Matt pulled out a cell phone and hit buttons. Meanwhile at Ken's party...

"I'm sorry for your losses," Ash murmured as he gazed at Cody and Ken. There were...deaths among those two?

"You should know what's it's like," Kari, expressing the same symapthetic gesture to the two bowing head, pointed to Ash. "Latios and Lugia, Silver's mother." Ash bobbed, confirming Kari's study. That's when Ken's mother burst through the door, a phone in hand.

"Ken, someone name Tai told me to get you and your friends to the concert tent," she frantically explained. "Something about a big problem." Ash and the Digidestined gasped. There was trouble.

"Thanks, Mom," Ken snapped from his grief. "Let's go!" The kids filed out and onto the streets. Pikachu was facing down DarkTyrannomon who scoffed at the smaller..._smaller_ rodent.

"You think that a little rat with an electric disposition will stop a Champion Digimon like me?" he snarled. Electric disposition?

("Don't underestimate me, you walking digital fossil,") Pikachu smacked. Who taught the mouse to belittle something 15, 20 times his size? DarkTyrannomon tried to claw Pikachu, only for him to leap clear and swing a shiny white tail and striking its head. The blow dazed the Digimon a bit but he recovered swiftly. Matt had to know that backup was coming. They had to stall the Digimon for as long as possible.

"I'd like to know what that was that Pikachu used," Sora wondered. DarkTyrannomon straightened himself out before he swung his own glowing white tail.

"That was your Iron Tail?" he snarled. "Here's my Iron Tail!" The swing, but that was off by a mile. Pikachu retreated back to Agumon, Gabumon and Biyomon.

"How about we combine our move with yours?" Agumon oferred. Pikachu nodded as the Bakemon swarmed in once more. To Pikachu, these were stepping stones. He bounced off one then another and another and another...slow down Pikachu! Let the cameraman catch up! The tail began to shine once more. The signal. "Pepper Breath!" Agumon coughed a small fireball which nailed Pikachu's lit tail.

"Blue Blaster!" Gabumon roared as he spat a blue stream of fire, striking the tail too.

"Spiraling Twister!" Biyomon screeched as she flapped a green swirl. That hit the tail as well. Finally, Pikachu's tail was red, green and blue as coats of his strengthened attack. He began to roll like a bowling ball.

"I don't think so!" DarkTyrannomon grinned. "Fire Blast!" That can't be good. It fired a larger fireball which was three times the size of Agumon's. It hit Pikachu but didn't cease it. Instead, the red fire became a violet color. "No way!" BOOM! Steroid-pumped Iron Tail was a successful strike to the head. The contact was so hard, DarkTyrannomon created a crater on the ground. If that was painful...

"Did DarkTyrannomon's attack fail?" Matt wondered. No one had a clue on what happened. DarkTyrannomon got back onto his hind feet and he was not happy about being a launching pad. But hey, who does?

"Tai!" sounded Davis...on a slick wolf-like beast in black, lightning bolt shaped armor. Dude, sweet. Along for the ride was Ash and Davis. The giant red bird was back and so were the flying horse and the winged sphinx and the man-bug creature too. They all arrived in time to help Pikachu out. That's when Yolei saw the problem with the control spire.

"What the heck's a control spire doing in Odaiba?!" she gasped. The giant bird might have an answer.

"Let's just destroy it and be done," it beaked. "Blast Rings!" The bird fired red rings from it's horns. The Bakemon ran interference and stopped the Blast Rings in a sacrifice.

"We need clearance!" Ken ordered. Kari was ready to heed the call.

"Nefertimon, multiple targets!" she advised. Nefertimon?

"You got it!" it acknowledged. "Queen's Paw!" From the cuffs, shards of purple stones began to shoot out and catch these ghost Digimon, knocking each down. The path was clear for Ken.

"Stingmon, go!" he ordered. That's when a purple glowing blade came out.

"Spiking Strike!" it buzzed. Stingmon punched the blade into the control spire which vaporized. That helped. DarkTyrannomon came charging back in. Without the spire, the teens were ready for more of the impact they needed as Pikachu regrouped with Ash.

"Did you help out, buddy?" Ash heedfully wondered. Pikachu helped plenty. Even Sora witnessed the power of Pikachu.

"I don't know what you feed him but he really gave us a boost," she praised. "Now leave the rest to us." Ash stood by and watched a new spectacle. "Okay guys, it's time!" She revealed a silver hand-held device as did Tai and Matt. That's when Agumon, Gabumon and Biyomon started to glow. Here we go!

"Agumon digivolve to...Greymon!" Agumon announced as he changed from a small dinosaur to a big dinosaur with a brown helmet that had a horn for a snout. That was cool.

"Gabumon digivolve to...Garurumon!" Gabumon called upon as he turned from a small lizard to the wolf from the pelt. That was a big blue wolf.

"Biyomon digivolve to...Birdramon!" Biyomon chanted as she became a ginormous bird of fire. Now all these Digimon and Pikachu faced off against DarkTyrannomon. Still, the large dinosaur wasn't impressed.

"You keep forgetting about the wave of Digimon that I'm able to inflict on you," DarkTyrannomon scoffed as a swarm of giant bees entered. Birdramon flew forward, not phased at the swarm.

"Meteor Wing!" she cawed with a flap. Clumps of fire rained from high and struck a lot of the bees. Ken and Davis scowled upon the situation. Their hand-held devices vibrated.

"Birdramon can't do it alone!" Davis huffed as his black beast had a moment of glow before turning back to Veemon. "Okay, Veemon. Let's digivolve!" Veemon began to glow once more.

"Veemon digivolve to...ExVeemon!" Veemon called upon as he became that same winged beast from before. Now Stingmon was joining in the shining. "ExVeemon..."

"Stingmon..." Stingmon named himself. That's when they began to merge together.

"...DNA digivolve to...Paildramon!" they bellowed in unison. DNA digivolve? Whoa. Paildramon: a taller version of ExVeemon with black mechanical armor around the legs, chest and arms. There was a red helmet with a visor over the eyes but he looked so awesome. Ash couldn't fathom what he was eying.

"DNA digivolve?" he gasped. "Whoa, when did you guys learn to do that? That's the coolest thing since I used Katie's Walrain's Ice Beam attack against her." Did Ash mean that he used someone's attack to his advantage?

"Desperado Blaster!" Paildramon began to fire ammo from guns attached to his hips. Each bullet tagged a bee, knocking them down. Then one bullet bounced off DarkTyrannomon, chipping off a piece of the scaly skin it was constructed under. There was a black plate under the chip and it looked reminiscent to the control spire that was already knocked down. To Ash, it wasn't normal.

"I may not be an expert on Digimon but I doubt that the overgrown fossil isn't who he thinks he is!" Was he...who he believed to be looking like?

"Yeah, Arukenimon must have used her Spirit Needle on a few control spires from when Ken was blooming them," TK informed. "We should have no problem with destroying it." So DarkTyrannomon was a phony. Greymon was ready to strike but Garurumon had to clear the bee swarm.

"I got the Flymon, Greymon!" it woofed. "Howling Blaster!" It breathed out a blue stream of fire and taking out the Flymon with ease.

"Thanks, friend," Greymon praised. "Nova Blast!" Greymon shot out a sphere of flames that approached DarkTyrannomon.

"Now I could bank on what Pikachu did but...Fire Blast!" it roared as it shot more flames at high speed which barreled into the Nova Blast. The contact ripped the Nova Blast and the fire became violet before crashing into Greymon who was propelled backwards...where Yolei was camping out watching her bird. Bad place, worse time. Ash saw it and Yolei, quickly rushing over to her side. The blast was so hard, Greymon was knocked out for the moment or longer. It stopped the backwards drag but began to fall backwards. When the shadow overlapped Yolei, she turned to view Greymon coming in for a hard landing.

"Yolei!" the bird screeched in panic. It was too far to reach her. It was helpless. Finally...BAM! Greymon crashed to the ground in heart sunk thud. "NO!" The humans turned to Greymon, unsure but quickly believing that someone was there before.

"Yolei!" Kari cried out. She feared that a Digidestined was lost. Greymon opened his eyes, viewing Ash...and two extra feet under him. Could his swiftness have resulted in him growing extra legs? No. What kind of world would establish that? Yolei was under Ash, completely unharmed. That was close. Breathing heavily, Ash tried to calm from that snapping sprint. She looked into his enlarged panicked eyes. This was the young man who saved her. He could've been crushed alongside her.

"You okay?" Ash asked. In a snap, Yolei grasped Ash's head. Was this punishment for his recklessness?

"Tell me...how this feels!" she scorned before...SMOOCH! Ash did something right to be rewarded...a kiss. It took a little bit for Ash to absorb but this may have been something Santa Claus could not have provided. Yolei giving Ash a winter long kiss...

"Guess I don't need to ask," Greymon joked. The bird saw Ash pulling Yolei back to her feet, much to the relief of him.

"Thanks, Ash," he sighed. Everyone regrouped...and the battle continued. Cody and Armadillomon haven't had any action yet. Give them a chance.

"Let's help out, Armadillomon," Cody suggested.

"You got it," Armadillomon agreed. Now it was Armadillomon's turn. "Armadillomon digivolve to...Ankylomon!" Armadillomon was no longer a small shell. It was the big shell from the beginning. "Tail Hammer!" The big shell swung its tail at DarkTyrannomon who got walloped. Greymon recovered enough to try and attack while DarkTyrannomon was stunned.

"You're finished!" Greymon roared once more. "Nova Blast!" BOOM! Nova Blast blew of DarkTyrannomon's head. There was no blood but the body soon shattered into billions of bits. The battle was done. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The party amongst the Digimon was rockin' as the humans comforted each other. Kari and Pikachu dashed over to see if Yolei and Ash were good. They were...more than good.

"You guys alright?" she questioned the two. Yolei was nonchalant about it. Hey, she was the one to drive her lips home. Ash was beside himself. He was the one whose lips were molested.

"Yeah, yeah," Yolei tried to ease. "We're fine." Tell that to a blushing, flushing face of the trainer. Kari saw the look and feared that something occurred when Greymon fell and nearly crushed the two. She turned to Ken in a thought that maybe he saw what happened between them. She knew something had taken place. If only she realized how deep it would go.

'Why do I have a feeling that Yolei may be after Ash than Ken?' He saw Ken and hoped that he noticed the notion between the two. Right now, it was just Kari.

"Sorry about the party, Kari," he muttered. The party? The party was the least of Kari's worries. The sight of Ash and Yolei embracing each other was more or less a shock treatment that Pikachu should have provided. Ken saw the look of dismay. "Are...you okay?" That bit. Ken was blind to what Kari had been feeling about the rising situation.

"Never mind!" On that angered note, Kari stormed off and Davis got to Ken, watching her stomp off.

"What's wrong with Kari?" he blankly wondered. He wasn't the only one. Ken shrugged his shoulders in confusion.

"Davis!" the redhead, not Sora, barked out for him. Davis and Ken turned and eyed a rather upset redhead who came to Matt's concert. "What the heck is wrong with you? Anytime something problematic shows up, you're always involved!" Wait...anytime? Did that include..?

"J-Jun!"

"And why did I have to see that cute little mouse fight something that shouldn't even be alive?" Davis got blamed for Pikachu's fight? Ease off! Pikachu got to the pair and questioned the rage of her.

("Excuse me,") he squeaked as he climbed up to Jun's shoulder. Jun was a bit surprised to see the mouse that she was just talking about. Hey, speaking of Pikachu...where did Ash and Yolei stumble off to?

"Hey, how are you doing?" Pikachu chirped in a good sense, bringing a smile onto her face. "Well that's relief. I'll take you home and feed you." With that, Jun and Pikachu scurried off. Okay...

"So, are you gonna tell Ash that your sister has his Pikachu?" Matt pointed out. That would need to be told to Ash somehow. It was late and everyone had gone in for rest. Well, Ash should be able to head home. At least, that was the plan. Ash and Yolei actually looked well together in bed in a new area. Maybe he got the memo that Pikachu was okay with Jun and Davis...and Veemon, let's not forget him. Kari was still up in deep thought at a place of her own...with Tai sleeping in a lower bunk.

'I don't get it, Ash,' she minded. 'When I first met you, I was the one who kissed you and gave you hope when all of Pallet Town vanished, including your own mom. Sure when Silver's mother had passed on, you remained calm and during your battle with LadyDevimon. I even bathed with you after your battle with Pike Queen Lucy, even though we were clothed. Is it that you had loved Yolei this whole time? I need a straight answer!'

* * *

TO BE CONTINUED...


	4. Visitation & Manifestation

_Chapter 4: Visitation & Manifestation_

* * *

What a crazy night last night. Two separate celebrations were happening with Matt's concert and Ken's Christmas bash only to merge when Digimon invaded. While the Digidestined repelled the attack, a more unique situation reared a lovely head. Yes, lovely, not ugly. In a reckless disregard for his own life, Ash yanked Yolei from being a human pancake by a falling Greymon. Sure, if he wasn't invited by her, Kari and Ken, he would've been well on his way to another big adventure. Then again, he wouldn't have received his reward...which was a kiss from Yolei. Of course, where there's an upside, there's usually a downside. That downside involved Kari. She recalled a previous adventure with Ash...in which _she _claimed his lips. The concept of dismay kept Kari from sleeping at all...and she wouldn't like the look in the mirror in the bathroom. "You've been awake all night long?" Gatomon gawked. She could help it if it was no big deal.

"It's just...bothering," she gulped. For her to be up all night, it's no question. A whimper had Tai and Agumon concerned for the younger sister.

"Are you regretting bringing Ash over here to celebrate Christmas with us?" Tai questioned. Kari's disfiguring look had a lot of volume.

"That would be like regretting me seeing the Pokémon World and meeting Ash at all." Her mind began to backtrack. A lot of memory flowed through her mind like a stream. "You remember the first time you saw Ash...back on the bridge, during the investigation of the desertion of Pallet Town." Tai could recall the moment.

"Yeah, but wasn't it you who wanted Ash? You were all over his face like he was a pool of chocolate you dove into...and might want at this moment to cheer you up." Kari wasn't in the mood for a chuckle, mulling her brother's analogy. Agumon began to understand Kari's depression.

"I can't really blame her," he voiced. "It did happen right in front of me." The rest shot looks at Agumon, wanting detail of the incident.

"So you saw what happened between Ash and Yolei?" Gatomon figured. He did witness the scene.

"Well, Ash was making sure that Yolei was alright when she pulled him down and..." As if to say "enough said," Agumon stopped. That made Kari stop and think. She might have been blaming the wrong person.

"So Yolei was the one who kissed Ash, not Ash on Yolei?" Kari guessed.

"Pretty much." If there was a time for Kari to calm down, now was the time. Tai believe that Ash was looking out for everyone, even his Pikachu.

"I could bet that if it was Cody or Sora," he reasoned. "He would've done the same thing. He's a pretty selfless guy." Yeah, no need to get huffy about a small incident like that. Contemplating, Kari had a bit of soul searching ahead of him. Meanwhile, Ash and Yolei looked like a married couple sleeping so soundly. It would be rude to wake them up.

"Yolei!" someone feminine outside the room shouted. "Yolei!" That's when the door opened. It was an older blond/brunette female who had shorter hair than Yolei herself. When she saw the pair in the bed, she thought they were doing more than just sleeping. To make sure, to all the men out there, be ready to feel Ash's pain. "Really, Yolei? You bring home a cute guy for this?!" She mud-hole stomped on Ash's groin. Needless to say how...hard that felt. Ash was awakened...and cringing from that stomp below the belt. His scream rudely woke Yolei who looked to the older girl...and to a fetal positioned Ash. In a snap, she became enraged.

"Momoe!" she yelled. "What was that for?!" Momoe really gave a footprint on the boys.

"Hey, I was just making sure you two weren't doing anything beyond inviting him to sleep the night." While her reason seemed understandable, her way to make sure...far from it.

"You couldn't just peered under the covers to make sure?" Well, Momoe did yank the covers off...and saw Yolei without anything in her lower region other than soaked white panties. Guess she wanted to be sure. "Someone was stealing my pajamas and not advising me about it. I'm sorry I didn't have anything more than undergarments." Hearing that allegation, Momoe quickly became sympathetic...to a fault.

"Alright, where is he?" Who? Momoe stormed off to seek out whoever "he" was. Ash sat up, still holding that space where he got forcefully stepped on.

"You alright, Ash?"

"Just...a few...minutes," he groaned. After sometime to recover, Ash and Yolei entered the living room where a TV was on. On the bottom of the screen read "Special Report." Above...another control spire?

"Large black towers have started to spring up out of nowhere all over the world," someone reported. "Early reports of an internet marketing scheme have been dismissed as..." As what? Ash and Yolei got a chance to see numerous locations which had the control spires. "Wait a minute...this just in. Dangerous creatures like those from Odaiba last night have begun to appear in the same locations as these black towers." The video began to show Digimon. Various Digimon were shown attacking innocent civilians and landmarks.

"Guess my return home's gonna be postponed."

"Here are some areas where these towers and monsters have been located: the hills near Asa, areas adjacent to the clock tower in Sapora, around the ancient castles in Osaka, near the Tomachi train stations in Tokyo, the grassy knoll in Dallas, Texas, Venice Beach, California and the list goes on and on." Some list. That's when the phone began to ring as the anchorman advised people to remain inside.

"Inoue residence," Yolei answered. A pause... "Got it, Cody. We'll stop by Izzy's house. See you there." She hung up and turned to Ash. "I gotta go, Ash. There's a meeting at Izzy's home." Ash wasn't about to let Yolei and Hawkmon go off.

"Let me come with," he offered. "I have a feeling that Davis may bring Pikachu along." Yolei totally forgot about Pikachu. Quickly, she changed her mind and allowed Ash to come with.

"Okay. Let's go." Uniformed for the wintry cold, Ash and Yolei bolted out of the house. In the meantime, Tai, Kari and the Digimon were heading to Izzy's place as well the moment the news of an emergency meeting was announced. Behind them was Davis, Veemon and Pikachu. Davis was beginning to slow down. Tai and Kari heard the slowing footsteps, a sign that something didn't fit.

"Come on, Davis," Tai shouted. "We need to understand what's up around the world." Davis knew that it was a duty he needed to fulfill yet something else nagged him.

"You guys watch Pikachu," he denied. "I need to get to Tomachi." That was one of the areas where a control spire and Digimon were reigning chaos.

"Where?"

"It was on the news. Tomachi has Digimon and Ken's there. He's probably in trouble." It was an understandable reason. Tai felt that a bigger issue was at hand.

"Timeout. Tomachi is the least of our problems. There's Digimon all over the world and people that need to be saved. We can't worry about one person." One person? Wasn't he a Digidestined, too?

"That's it! I can't believe that a guy who had the Crest of Courage would be heartless as well! I'm going to Tomachi and that's that!" Someone was sticking up for another person. Tai realized that he could no longer hold Davis back.

"I-I'm sorry. Go and get Ken from danger and come to Izzy's, ASAP." Davis bobbed a nod prior to his dash to find Ken. The others with Pikachu in tow proceeded. The gathering at Izzy's home was sudden. Izzy was on the computer with the rest of the Digidestined and Digimon cramped inside. On screen, there was a count of unread e-mails piling up in Izzy's mailbox.

"Unbelievable!" he awed at the continuously growing amount. "I'm getting e-mails from kids all over the world. This is just like a few years ago." It happened before? Ash had to wonder about all of the mail that was coming in.

"They must be experiencing the same problems as over here in Odaiba," he summarized with Pikachu back on his shoulder. "But how do they all have your e-mail address when they're stretched thousands of miles away?" That seemed like a question with a complicated answer...unless you were Izzy.

"Because all these kids are Digidestined kids. Kinda makes this place Digidestined Main HQ." The amount was in the triple digits.

"No way!" Cody gasped. "There's over 200 e-mails already!" That's a lot of e-mails. Some barely get two a day, not 200 in a matter of minutes.

"Are you implying that we're not the only Digidestined trying to maintain balance between the two worlds?" Yolei wondered. Ash sounded a throat clearer, causing Yolei and Cody to realize _his_ world as well. "Sorry. _Three_ worlds." Ash nodded to the correction.

"To be honest, I don't have a clear amount to how many Digidestined there are but I believe that anyone who's seen a Digimon would qualify like Willis in Colorado or Mimi's friend, Michael in St. Petersburg, Florida." There's no rough estimate?

"The way it sounds, there's gotta be thousands if not millions of Digidestined kids being stretched thin," Ash figured. "But then wouldn't I be one as well? I mean, here I am with you guys and not that I'm complaining but..."

"Aren't you already an honorary Digidestined member?" Gatomon meowed. "I mean, you've got Wizardmon inside of you." Wizardmon? A Digimon inside of Ash?

"What's this about Wizardmon inside Ash?" Joe gawked. Ash would answer but Tai stood up.

"That can be saved for another time," he replied for Ash. "What we should do is answer all those e-mails and see who has a Digivice and who doesn't." Good idea. Izzy was quick on the draw.

"Okay," he agreed. "Tai, you write back the kids in Europe. Matt, you can take both North and South America. Sora, take Africa and Joe, why not order us some pizzas." Why pizzas? There's a Digimon epidemic going around.

"How about that? An entire army of Digidestined from all over the world...and I'm the leader!" Really? Come on, Tai. You're not fooling anyone. Not even Pikachu...who shocked Tai into submission. All Tai could do was collapse.

"I think that's Pikachu's way of saying that you're full of it," Sora mocked. Once recovered, the older teens evacuated the room to work on their assigned regions as Izzy opened up a map of Earth. There were spots that began to flash all across the lands.

"These are the locations where digital ports have opened and Digimon emerged from," he summarized. "Man, they're lighting up like a Christmas tree." That's a problem. Cody was quick with a solution.

"It doesn't sound like much of a problem," he believed. "All we have to do is get the Digimon back through those ports." While he was confident, Ash didn't think it was so clear cut.

"I highly doubt it's gonna be that easy," he figured.

"In more ways than one," Izzy backed. "All of the ports are closed up. We need to hit on all of these ports and use the D-3's to open them back up." Okay, any suggestions on how to get to all of these places? Ash had one.

"Say, is there any way to reach all those areas using the DigiWorld and emerge everywhere?" Kari shook no.

"The DigiWorld opens up one port at a time and a moment to reset," she motioned. "It would take us months to reach everywhere." Months? That's a long time...time they don't have.

"We don't have months," TK groaned. "The way the control spires keep popping up, it would take days before everything's ruined." So now what? Then, Izzy got another e-mail...with three names and a possible solution.

"Apparently, Gennai has an option," Izzy noticed. "And...who's Delia and Sam Oak?" Uh oh! Ash began to retreat to the back wall. "Let's bring them here and see what's up." Everyone took a few paces back. Suddenly, there was a flash. When it dimmed, Ash's mother was right there. She was joined by an adult brunette male in a white cloak and an gray-haired in a lab coat. Oh boy!

"Morning, Ash," she chirped. She's a morning person. Ash's jaw dropped. He wasn't the only one. Kari's and Yolei's mouths crashed the ground as well.

"Mom, what are you and Prof. Oak doing here?" he gulped. You could bet that she came for Ash.

"Well, come on. I came to make sure you were on your way back. So what's the holdup?" The holdup may have been Ash recovering from that groin kick.

"Delia, we just got news that there's a worldwide pandemic with an invasion," Kari informed. "By the way, how did you and Prof. Oak wound up meeting Gennai?" All Delia did was giggle.

"An accident." Accident? Did they happen to stumble across Gennai just like that?

"We came here to pick Ash up and see that he was on his way back when we saw a giant blue snake-like dragon and wondered what it was," the gray-haired motioned. "Gennai told us that the Digimon had escaped somewhere and I was starting to think the Pokémon world was being invaded again, knowing the chaos from before." Gennai came forward, the last of the new ones to speak.

"It would seem that the holes within each universe may need some tempering,"he mulled. "However, I came because I have a present from that dragon, or Azulongmon in that matter. Hold out your Digivices." Sorry, Ash. The Digidestined held out their devices in which Gennai presented a blue orb. That caught Ash's eyes.

"Gennai, what's that?" he wondered.

"This is a digital core. Azulongmon has twelve of these and who knows how powerful each one is. Ready?" The orb began to flash a shining light, followed by the devices. That's when there were warm feelings inside. No, not loving emotions.

"I feel...kinda fuzzy," Gatomon purred.

"You _are_ fuzzy," Patamon snapped...before he felt the warmth. "Hey, I feel it too." The Digimon seemed to have no problem. Soon enough, it was over. Okay, people. We can look again.

"Well, that was a unique light show," Oak huffed. Before everyone felt relief to see again, Ash began to moan in pain. Everyone turned to Ash, knelt down and clutching his chest. His face showed agony.

"Ash!" Delia, Kari and Yolei gasped as they got to Ash.

"What's wrong?" Joe wondered.

"My chest!" he cringed. "It feels like...something wants to come out!" What could that something be? "I...can't release...it!" That can't feel too comfortable. Delia got to behind Ash. Wait...was was she plotting?

"You might want to stand back," she advised. A good shot to the spine? What kind of mother would do that?

"Hold on, Delia," Gennai called as he felt the ribs of Ash. He then smiled. "I know what he needs. Kari, Yolei...on the cheeks." A pair of kisses? Explain, Gennai. Yolei and Kari had to be getting a pretty odd feeling. Still, if it helped... Kari held her fist up. Then she rose one finger. Then two finger and three. Both lunged in and pressed lips onto Ash's cheeks. That's when a shine ruptured from Ash, lighting up the room only to shoot out a beam which hit Paildramon as he was battling a few of the loose Digimon. That's when Paildramon felt a rapid surge of energy from the light.

"Paildramon, what's going on?!" Davis worried. Before answering, Paildramon vanished in a veil of the light...and began to morph.

"Paildramon Mega-Digivolve to...Imperialdramon!" It roared out as it emerged from the light with a ravaging awesome look. It was a large freaky dragon-like creature. The head appeared to be wearing a white devil mask in addition to the black scaly legs, large blue/orange dragon wings with a dome-like design. On that design was a cannon turret. "I am Imperialdramon, a Mega-level Digimon that operates like a mobile fortress with weapons in unique areas. My Positron Laser will devastate anyone in my path." Imperialdramon was ready for battle. Back at Izzy's house the shine faded. When done, Ash was no longer in pain, a relieved sigh was best placed. Everyone else seemed shocked and awed.

"Glad to feel pain-free again," Ash breathed...until he looked ahead where a new figure took shape. It was a midget of a man emerged. He was garbed in a white cotton jumpsuit with red pieces of fabric sticking out over zippers and a purple witch's hat with a skull as an emblem. He also wore boots with crescent moons over shoestrings. A purple scarf was over most of his face. The only thing you could see was his eyes. Those eyes stared at the hands, wondering what the heck just happened.

"I...I'm alive?" he stuttered. There was one Digimon it gazed upon as she ran up to him. "G-Gatomon?" Awkward silence. Finally, Kari's and Gatomon's faces beamed joy as they hugged...

"Wizardmon!" they cheered in a tearful unison. TK was overwhelmed in the excitement in seeing Wizardmon up and about. Everyone else became shunned about such a sight.

"Well, to say that it was unexpected is the easiest explanation," Gennai huffed. "Wizardmon, welcome back to the living."

"Thank you, Gennai," Wizardmon greeted. "I'll tell you, it was a long road back to being in the flesh. Without the realization of Ash possessing a source called aura and being aligned with my spirit for support, I'd doubt either Ash or myself would be alive." Aura?

"What do you mean Wizardmon?" Cody gulped. Wizardmon shot a look, not feeling familiar with the youngest Digidestined. Armadillomon was right there to help him.

"Oh, he's Cody, one of the newer Digidestined," he pointed out. "And over there is Yolei. She's also one of them." Wizardmon took stock of the new Digidestined.

"So, the amount of Digidestined grows," he sighed. He had no clue about the quantity of the issue.

"That's a light way to put it," Delia gawked when she saw the ever-rapidly growing "stack" of mail in Izzy's box. Suddenly, the screen shifted to a camera shot from some helicopter. There was Davis and Ken in a transparent dome on Imperialdramon. Everyone became shocked by the new creature.

"Awesome!" Ash cheered. "That's the coolest thing since I saw that DNA Digivolve last night."

"That's Imperialdramon," Gennai identified. "A Mega-level Digimon. Azulongmon's digital cores are more powerful than I would've imagined." And that's not all. There was a map of Japan where the areas where control spires stood were cleared. "It seems Davis and Ken have taken care of Japan. However, they can't do it alone." Obviously.

"The way Imperialdramon had taken care of the country in so little time, there's no question that he's fast as Pikachu's lightning," Oak summarized. "He can pretty much clear the world within an hour." Man that's ridiculously fast.

"The Positron Laser can decimate the control spires that are spread from Beijing to San Francisco," Izzy studied. "However, that only solves half of the problem." Paying attention to Izzy, the news and his elders, Ash figured what the other half was.

"You need to open the digital ports with the D-3's in order to send the Digimon back home," he answered. "But if I'm not mistaken, only six of you guys own the D-3's." That would be Davis, TK, Cody, Ken, Kari and Yolei.

"Someone's been paying attention to the issue at hand," Tentomon praised. Give Ash a graduation cap and gown.

"Right," Gennai replied. "This is why I've marked six certain spots over the world where we can gather the Digimon and send them all back. There, six other mes reside to aid you." Gennai, what are the six? "The points are the coral reefs in Sydney, Australia; the frozen tundra in Moscow, Russia; d'Arc de Triumph in Paris, France; the Aztec pyramids in Mexico City; Rockefeller Center in New York City and Hong Kong." Good places to start.

"Since I know Mandarin, I'll take Hong Kong," Kari volunteered. So Kari wanted to go to Hong Kong.

"I've got family in Paris," TK realized. "I'll take that post." TK in France. Check.

"With Submarimon, I can help protect the coral reefs," Cody pondered. Cody chose Sydney. Now that only left Moscow, Mexico City and New York. Speaking of New York...

"Say, isn't Mimi residing in New York?" Ash remembered. That made Delia act defensive. She had to be thinking that Ash wanted to aid the Digidestined in this worldwide mission.

"Oh, no you don't!" she snapped. This was her son, you couldn't blame her. "You've got Sinnoh to look forward to." Ash wasn't implying that he wanted to go to New York...at least that's what it sounded like.

"I was merely pointing out one of their friends either Yolei, Ken or Davis can team up with." Whoops! Delia began to scratch the back of her neck about that overreacting.

"Sorry. I thought you were going out of line." She's a mother. She had all the reasons to be concerned for her own flesh and blood.

"Ash, it's alright for you to join us," Izzy insisted. "After all, Gatomon did tell you that you're one of us, though without a Digimon, Digivice, D-3 or D-Terminal." Ash was a bit dumbfounded with the notion of joining them after all. Of course, Delia would oppose the choice.

"I don't think so! He's already got a lot of work ahead of him in his next journey, he doesn't need this trip all over the world!" Izzy was nerved out. Delia's outburst prompted the older Digidestined to reenter the room.

"Izzy, what's going on?" Tai called. That's when they saw the mother and the professor. "Whoa, who are they?!" While the older set weren't familiar with the mom and professor, they did realize one thing: it was cramp. Finally, Yolei chose the best way of resolution.

"Delia, maybe I should speak out," she spoke. "First off, Ash has helped us in more ways than what we've been able to think about trainers to begin with. I know he's looking forward to his next journey, but that can wait for a little while longer." Though she had a good point, it wasn't enough to just hand Ash over to a group of kids ready to take a global trip.

"He's a Pokémon trainer, not a Digidestined. He has no Digimon and has no business in your manner!" Oh, but don't dismiss Yolei with comebacks.

"He doesn't need a Digimon to be a Digidestined. Besides, weren't you the one who raised him to be a selfless wild child?" Some argument by Yolei. However, someone decided to play spoiler.

"Actually, you _do _need to have a Digimon to be a Digidestined," Gennai corrected. That meant that Ash _wasn't_ a Digidestined.

"Gennai, you're not helping the matter," Matt moaned. In other words, be quiet Gennai.

"But I do get Yolei's point. I may not have seen what occurred sometime ago, but with the emitting of Wizardmon, Ash can join the rest in helping rodeo in the Digimon." Delia was a bit appalled. She wanted to keep Ash in line. Then again, was Ash _ever_ in line?

"But-" Delia tried to refuse that acceptance.

"I'm sure where Ash chooses where to go, the crisis in that area is as good as cake." Delia was defeated. Ash was allowed to join. Yolei twisted around to see where Ash would like to go.

"So, of the six places," she opened up. "Where do you want to go?" Of the six? Join Cody in Sydney? TK in Paris? Kari in Hong Kong? Mimi in New York?

"You know, I would like to meet Mimi," he thought up. "I'll go with the good old US of A. New York City." Ash has chosen New York. Everyone respected Ash's choice.

"Oh, by the way," Gennai voiced. "I do have a little present for your Pikachu." A present? Well, it _was _around Christmas time. Gennai revealed a black collar. Seriously, Gennai, there's no need to turn Pikachu goth. Pikachu lifted his chin for Gennai to slip the collar onto his neck. Okay, what's the purpose.

("Gennai, why are you making me wear a collar?") he squeaked. ("I mean...") "...not that I'm reject-" Everyone gasped at Pikachu's ability to speak human once more. So Gennai presented a voice-changing collar. "Whoa! I guess I don't need to be in the DigiWorld to do this."

"Guess not. The good thing is that the collar is electricity proof, meaning that you can shock anyone without worrying about damaging it." Pikachu had to feel praised by Gennai to give this back.

"Thanks a lot, Gennai." By that time, Imperialdramon had returned to the nearby area. Kari was the first to spot the dragon-like tank.

"Davis and Ken are back!" That's good news. "Let's get going. We don't wanna waste time." Everyone agreed and headed out the door...except for Ash, Pikachu, Wizardmon, Delia and Oak. Ash had some sort of guilty conscious on him.

"It could be me but I think I've grown a little too fond of the Digidestined, mainly Kari and Yolei," he admitted. Those two were there to help Ash out of a situation before in the Pokémon World. Now the roles have been reversed.

"You may not be a Digidestined, Ash," Oak reminded. "But your unconventional thinking could be of some use to battle the issue. Just be careful in New York or wherever you're going to." This was Ash. He was never careful...yet tried to act like he would be.

"I will." Finally but with Delia and Wizardmon, Ash and Pikachu regrouped with everyone at a park. Davis and Ken had a chance to meet Gennai for the first time. Now came the final instructions from the DigiWorld-home human.

"Now listen since I'm only gonna say this once," he began. "The assigned digital ports will not open without a D-3, thus the early planning with each member to be enlisted to the such location. There, team up with the other Digidestined kids and don't stop fighting until all of the Digimon are back home. Any questions?" Davis rose a hand. This had to be good.

"Flying on Imperialdramon is cool and all," he complimented. "But is it possible to watch a movie during the flyover?" He seemed like someone who didn't want to be bored.

"I'm afraid not, Davis. Imperialdramon flies so fast to each destination, you won't have time for a movie." Anyone else? No? "Well, I guess this is my time to say good luck and godspeed." That's when he saw the Ketchum mom and son. "Ash, I have great confidence that you will be of great asset to the recovery of the Digimon. As for you, Delia...Sam said it best: you've raised a heck of a good child. Just don't lose the confidence he has. Otherwise, we're all in big trouble." Delia bobbed a nod,

"That's not a problem, Gennai," she smiled. She had dressed a warm pink coat on herself. "Though, I guess whenever something comes up, there's no such thing as a typical day in Ash's life."

"Mom!" Ash snapped in embarrassment. Everyone giggled in a tease.

"Well, I'll make sure that Delia and Sam are safe back in Pallet Town," Gennai continued. "I may want to check it out and see if we may keep a link to each others' worlds." Maybe there could be a way that the link between the DigiWorld and Pokémon World.

"Well in that case, maybe you can have a taste of my patent chili dog pizza." Chili dog pizza?

"What is that, a taste of Mexico and Italy combined?" Well it sounded spicy. "Well, you kids...take care." With that, Gennai and Delia vanished. They probably went to pick up Oak and then back through the DigiWorld.

"Well, guys," Pikachu spoke up. "They happened to set 'em up. Let's go knock 'em down." Sora and Kari had a good chuckle out of that one.

"Nice bowling reference, Pikachu," Biyomon giggled. Finally, all were aboard Imperialdramon as different groups came in to see the giant beast. Then, it vanished in a stream exiting the country. The trip over the world had begun.

* * *

TO BE CONTINUED...


	5. Worldwide & Sincere

_Chapter 5: Worldwide & Sincere

* * *

_

The worldwide tour began and for Ash and Pikachu, they were getting a look at what the world looked like from high on Imperialdramon. This, by the way, wasn't a free look at the world Davis, Kari, Yolei and the other Digidestined were trying to protect. There was a job to do, pre-Christmas time. Imperialdramon unleashed its Positron Laser, tagging and destroying control spires that have been springing up all over the world. Never underestimate Imperialdramon's accuracy. However, that was only part of the problem. The other would be to get the Digimon back home in the DigiWorld. The first stop: Australia with its sunny beaches and clam-like theater in the distance. Cody wanted to stop here since he claimed to have Submarimon that can protect the coral reefs. Joe chose to stick by Cody and make sure he was okay and that went double for Gomamon. "You guys take care of yourselves!" Pikachu shouted. Yeah, Gennai gave Pikachu a little voice-altering collar so that it could speak like the rest. Anyway, Imperialdramon lifted back off before making the next stop: Hong Kong. Hong Kong looked just like Odaiba. What the heck? This was Kari's stop since she knew Mandarin. Izzy offered to tag along with Kari. Speaking of tag...

"Ash, be careful in New York," she wished. That's when she laid a kiss onto Ash's cheek. Ash had been getting a lot of loving between her and Yolei. Kari, Izzy and their Digimon disembarked onto the grounds of Hong Kong. Davis was not too pleased that Ash was getting the love and he wasn't. Next: the frozen tundra of Moscow. So who would take it? Yolei and Sora volunteered. Good luck. Yolei embraced Ash in a bear hug and a peck onto the other cheek before leaving. Imperialdramon took off, leaving the girls to freeze their tushes off.

"Great, everyone has a warm place while we're in the middle of a Russian Blizzard," Yolei moaned, wishing she was still by Ash's side. The next stop in the tour: Paris, France. There was a pointy iron tower which stretched twice as high as the control spires which once stood. Because of family, TK chose this area.

"This is it, Imperialdramon," Tai advised. Guess he wanted to side with TK on this case. "TK and I will unite a revolution to combat the Digimon here." We're counting on you.

"Viva la France!" TK chanted as Imperialdramon left. So now it's Mexico City and New York to go.

"Alright, Ash," Davis spoke up. "We'll be taking a little detour to Miami and pick up Michael." Ash remembered the talk beforehand. Michael was Mimi's friend.

"But what about Mexico City and New York?" Ash wondered. There wasn't a fret in the crowd.

"There are a couple of jets that we can use to arrive at our destinations," Matt reassured. Talk about planning ahead. "Since Davis offered New York to make sure he has a babysitter in case." Oh, that's low. Davis steamed a bit from that figurative jab.

"I need no babysitter!" he snapped. Finally, Imperialdramon landed and began to change. Before long, Imperialdramon shrunk and split into Veemon and Wormmon.

"Oh no, don't tell me," Veemon began to freak out. Davis had calmed enough to see Veemon was okay.

"Relax, Veemon. You just need an energy boost." So the remaining Digidestined and Ash were on American soil...well sand first.

"So, Davis," Ken addressed. "Do you know when Michael's coming?" It had to be soon. Suddenly...

"Davis!" a male shouted. The boys turned to see a curly blond boy approaching them. By the boy was a small forest green amphibian. Davis beamed a smirk, knowing who it is.

"Michael!" he named. The boys met up with the now-named Michael. Of course, that included him meeting Ash and Pikachu for the first time. "Oh yeah. This is my romantic rival, Ash and his Pokémon, Pikachu." Romantic Rival?

"Davis, you're still pretty jealous over the fact that Kari and Yolei like me more than you," Ash retorted. Matt and Michael shared a giggle at Davis' shortcomings.

"Well, anyway," Michael tried to readjust. "I've managed to round up the helicopter and Cessna that you ordered to get us to our locations." Cool. The boys left the beach and ran to the tarmac of a runway. Of course, they got a ride in an SUV. There was the helicopter and the Cessna that Michael borrowed. "Ken, Matt, the helicopter can take you directly to Mexico City." That would mean Ash, Davis and Michael were taking the Cessna or small plane.

"I guess a plane ride should be safe if there's a pro waiting in this Cessna, whatever those are," Pikachu anxiously geared. The teams had split to their assigned airliners. In the Cessna, Davis threw the bags to the back.

"I'd like to see this baby in the air," he chuckled to where the pilot turned. It was another blond, hunkier than Gennai but not by much. Davis was flabbergasted.

"It's in safe hands, kid," he grinned. Ash and Michael boarded and saw the stunned look Davis portrayed.

"You...okay, Davy," Ash teased. Davis couldn't shake the look off.

"I feel like I'm watching a movie," he stammered. "He was in my favorite movie ever in my life." The pilot was an actor? Talk about a dream come true.

"That's just my dad," Michael confessed. Dad? Try coolest dad.

"You never told me that your dad was a famous Hollywood actor." Kinda wished we had dads like that, huh? The cool dad started the turbine engines which helped push the Cessna to move forward.

"Okay!" Ash gritted with a smile. "Next stop: New York City!" The Cessna took to the air, leaving Miami. As they flew above the country, flying Digimon were viewed airing toward the same direction. "You think the Digimon got the same message as us?" Maybe. They began to enter New York airspace where there was a tall lime green statue of a woman in a toga and crown holding a torch and tablet.

"The Statue of Liberty, Ash," Michael identified. "We're closing in." They reached the city where there seemed to be rush hour traffic. Dozens of cars were lined up on a bridge. Talk about gridlock. Suddenly, there was an open stretch of road with green lights lined up. The cool dad assumed that this was the stop.

"I see the runway," he announced. On the ground was Palmon waiving two of the green lights. Hey, we haven't seen her since the second chapter. Behind her, also waiving green lights was a blondish-redhead in a green coat and beanie hat. That's got to be Mimi. The Cessna flew over the two and landed in the streets. A perfect three point landing. The occupants in the Cessna began to file out as the two from the ground dashed over to meet them. Ash started to stretch his legs when...

"Davis!" she called out. "Michael!" The boys spotted the girl dashing towards them.

"Mimi!" Davis called over. True enough. As soon as Mimi made it to the group, Palmon recognized Ash. Mimi didn't see him since she was rather focused on Davis and Michael.

"Ash, welcome to Manhattan," she greeted. Ash and Pikachu knelt down to greet the plant.

"Well, looks like I get to fulfill your wish," he teased. In the second chapter prior to departing, Palmon had hoped for Ash to meet her partner. Mimi saw the meeting and wondered who this new boy was.

"Excuse me, but what are you doing with Palmon?" she questioned. As soon as Ash looked, Mimi gasped. A moment of pause before...she tackled him, pinning Ash to the street and hugging him with some shaking. "Oh my. Aren't you the most adorable boy ever. Oh I should hold you in my arms until death that you're so cute and brave to face such the crisis going on-"

"Poison Ivy!" Palmon shouted as she shot vines out of her arms, wrapping around the two before forcefully yanking them apart. Mimi was pulled down onto her buttocks. She was wondering why Palmon lashed out like she did. "Geez, this is the first time you've met him and all of a sudden you wanna love him? For gosh sake, at least know who he is, first." Someone's keeping the team in moderation. Ash got to his feet and got to Mimi to help her onto her legs.

"Allow me," he offered with a hand out. "I'm Ash and unlike you or Davis or Michael, I'm a Pokémon trainer." Mimi looked more confused than when she first saw Ash.

"P-Pokémon?" she repeated befuddling. Then she smiled as if that detail was not necessary. "I'd like to know how you heard about the situation going on that a trainer would get involved but any extra help is accepted. Sorry about that, I just couldn't help it. You are cute for a boy." Ash huffed a chuckle like the incident wasn't that bad of an issue.

"Thanks." Needless to say how jealous Davis was when Mimi pounced on Ash.

"One of these days, Ash, I'll find your secret to getting the girl," he proposed. That's when he quickly thought of an idea. It had to be that incident. 'Hold on! Mimi was on Ash faster than both Kari and Yolei. If I can, by all mean, keep Ash with Mimi, Kari might be left with me. Oh, Davis, sometimes I wish I was such a criminal genius!' His grin began to spook Veemon.

"Davis, is there something you wanna tell us?" he shuttered. That snapped Davis out of the loop he was in.

"Right. Let's check the situation out and see where the Digimon are going." The rest nodded before heading off to a park with a bench. Michael activated his laptop and scoped the radar. There were plenty of dots that seem to be heading to a fixed location. A meeting of mythical proportions. "The Digidestined and Digimon are all heading toward Central Park, about a mile from here." To Davis and Veemon, it was a good thing. "Awesome. They had to know that we're the only ones able to handle a job as big as this." To Ash, this was like a rodeo.

"Those guys rounded up the wild Digimon like Prof. Oak to my herd of Tauros," he compared. Tauros, and Ash had a herd?

"You don't mean the steers that trample through the ranch everyday, do you?" Veemon asked. Ash nodded to what Veemon meant.

"So, Mimi, was this your plan to gather the Digimon in one place?" Michael guessed. Ash had a doubt about it.

"You ask me, that might have been too tall of a task for one person to accomplish alone," he figured. Little did he know how right he was.

"You got that right," voiced...Gennai? All turned to...Gennai! What the heck was he doing in New York?

"G-Gennai?" Davis hiccuped. Gennai shook his head. Huh?

"Not really. The name's Benjamin. Gennai and I have been good friends." Gen...Benjamin got a look at the lineup while Davis and Veemon still acted dumbfounded.

"But you look exactly like him," Veemon viewed. Yeah, isn't there anything different like an accent or a tattoo that could tell the two apart?

"That's because I was once Gennai with the others." How did that work?

"Every time I turn around, there are more Gennais and Digidestined," Davis complained. "I don't think I've ever had to endure so much to the point of a headache." Suddenly, something on Mimi began to beep. She dug into her pockets and pulled out a hand-held device.

"Speaking of Digidestined," Mimi spoke when she read an e-mail. "We've been called upon. There's a boy named Phil telling us that a Cherrymon is destroying Christmas trees in Rockefeller Center." That's not good news to handle. Damaging Christmas trees?

"Someone's not in the holiday spirit," Ash joked. "We need to move out." Good idea.

"Ash, do you know where Rockefeller Center is?" Not Ash but Pikachu's ears seemed to be picking up the destruction of the trees.

"I have a pretty good hunch," he guessed. "Ash, I need a ride." Ash pulled out a red/white ball and tossed it to the air, unveiling a large black bird. Whoa, Ash bringing out the big guns. The rest were flabbergasted that more than just Pikachu on hand...from a little ball.

"Swellow, listen to Pikachu and head over to the Rockefeller Center," he ordered. "We'll catch up!" Swellow flew to the air with Pikachu on its back.

"Over there!" Swellow and Pikachu hurried off, rather impressing Mimi even more.

"I don't think Davis would've been that quick to figure out a solution," Palmon studied.

"Tell me about it," Mimi agreed. "The more I see Ash work, the more infatuated I am about him." Uh oh! "But we shouldn't be stalling. I don't know how strong that Swellow is, but I do know it can't do the job alone." That's when Benjamin decided to speak up.

"Then how about I give you a little boost, courtesy of Azulongmon," he offered. Palmon wondered if this was a dream come true. Davis, Michael and Mimi presented their Digivices which Benjamin showed off a light covered by Davis? Was it another of the cores? That's when...

"Veemon digivolve to...ExVeemon!" Veemon chanted before becoming ExVeemon once more. Then it was Palmon's turn.

"Palmon digivolve to...Togemon!" she chanted when she grew...higher than what a lot would imagine. She became a giant walking cactus with red punching gloves. She wouldn't remain thorny for long. "Togemon digivolve to...Lillymon!" Togemon shrunk to a human size. She was like a fairy. She had green wings and matching color boots. She had a pink dress designed like a flower and her head was fitted with such the occasion.

"Betamon digivolve to...Seadramon!" the last green creature called out. That creature suddenly shifted more shapes than one screensaver. It was now a giant sea serpant with a yellow head. Ash was in some shock, more awe about Mimi's Digimon who was not Lillymon.

"If these female Digimon can grow like Palmon and Gatomon, I may be falling for them more than a mere human," he mumbled. He's got to be concentrating more on Pikachu. "Let's get going!"

"Ash, over here!" Benjamin called. Ash turned to see the others file into a car. No choice and since the silver car was a four-door, he could easily hop in. Benjamin and Mimi were in the front and the boys were in the backseat. Sucks to be there. "Just be glad I have a driver's license last week." He adjusted the stick to D and kicked down the accelerate pedal. The car sped off in pursuit of the other Digimon as well as Pikachu and Swellow. As if out of a King Kong movie, a giant oak tree was climbing a skyscraper which had illuminating orange "RCA" lights on top. What are the odds that's Cherrymon? A streaming flame that looked like a grown Agumon came forward to knock it off. The tree wanted nothing of that and smacked the flame aside.

"Oh man, Flareizamon!" A black kid who somewhat resembled Ash cried out. "Where's help when you need it?" Help would arrive at that moment with Pikachu and Swellow. "What's that? New Digimon?" Not quite.

"Thanks to learning from Ash, I've got the move set down," Pikachu reminded as Swellow circled the living tree. The tree swiped at Swellow but the swinging was in vain. "Do Aerial Ace! I got the first strike."

("Okay!") Swellow beaked. The tree tried to swipe once more. Swellow looped, avoiding the hit. Pikachu was right there to snag onto the limb offered.

"Time to chop you down!" Pikachu swung the Iron Tail. BOOM! In the face. The tree staggered and tried to recover but here came Swellow. KABLAM! Swellow barreled into the tree with such force, it was shot into the "R" light. Glass from the shattered sign rained onto the tree as Pikachu hopped back on board Swellow. The living tree began to shake off the glass shards. Lillymon swooped in, ready to finish what Pikachu and Swellow started.

"Leave the rest to me!" she announced. "Flower Wreath!" She began to circle around the tree when a wreath of flowers snared the walking wood as the ride arrived to join the black boy. All exited where the boy noticed Mimi and Michael.

"You guys, thanks for getting my message!" he praised for help. So he's Phil. All looked back up in time to see the tree rip the wreath skirt from beneath. That got Lillymon in dismay.

"What happened?" Mimi knew about Lillymon's attacks and what they could do just as ExVeemon got to the rest.

"Cherrymon isn't in control of a Virus," she figured. And that tree, Cherrymon, isn't a Virus?

"He's just out on a limb against Christmas trees," Phil added. That's rather interesting to say.

"He's acting more lemon than cherry if he's taking only his own kind down," Ash huffed. There just had to be tree jokes in the Christmas season. Davis decided to allow ExVeemon to go for an attack.

"Alright, ExVeemon," he called upon. "We need to get this giant cherry tree on ice!" It's already cold so why rub it in? ExVeemon noticed the frozen ice rink in front of a gold statue of a woman lying down.

"On ice, eh?" ExVeemon plotted. "Leave everything to me!" He flew up the RCA building and met Cherrymon. "V-Kick!" ExVeemon did a drop kick which knocked Cherrymon off the ledge. That's not good. Cherrymon fell from so high up, it appeared to be a suicide plunge. Everyone gasped, knowing the mega hard impact Cherrymon would feel, even Ash.

"Oh, boy," he murmured. "This is gonna leave a splinter." Ash, not now! WHAM! Head first into the ice rink. Cherrymon was on ice all right. Too bad there wasn't any skates his pair or pack. He began to recover from the fall, still a little branched out in thought. Great, now they got the author doing it. Thanks a lot, you guys!

"Is that what you meant by putting him on ice, Davis?" Davis loudly groaned at the literal meaning.

"Not exactly," he moaned. Can't blame him for thinking as such. Uh, anyone paying attention to Cherrymon?

"Pit Pelter!" it shouted as cherries from the leaves fired at the group at high velocity, smacking into the Digimon. Suddenly, vines spurt out, wrapping the helpers.

"ExVeemon!" Davis cried out.

"Lillymon!" Mimi teared for her Digimon's safety.

"Seadramon!" Michael choked.

"Flareizamon!" Phil gasped. Chaerrymon had the Digimon...not the Pokémon, giving Ash the best shot ever.

"Swellow, continue Aerial Ace and into Steel Wing!" Ash called. The others wondered why Ash wasn't in a panicked state. Swellow darted from high up, Pikachu still on his back when the wings began to glow like Pikachu when he did Iron Tail. SLASH! The vines were cut. The Digimon broke free from the vines and regrouped. Phil was still a little startled with who Ash had.

"Swellow? That's a Digimon name I hadn't heard of!" If only he knew.

"Later, Phil. We need to stop that bark from the roots."

"Knock it off with the tree jokes!" Davis shouted, annoyed. "Besides, they're not any good!" No, but what came next would be.

"Solar Ray!" someone shouted. A yellow beam struck Cherrymon, flooring it. The others turned to see a man/horse combination with a cannon for an arm. By that big hybrid, a brunette girl.

"My name's Maria," she called herself. "Did someone call for help?" There's plenty of enforcement now.

"You bet we did," Michael cheered. "Thanks!"

"Strong Carapace!" another creature shouted. All turned to a tan tortoise with rocks in its shell. Those rocks started to glow before shot out at and hitting Cherrymon. This was an ambush. There was a brunette boy with a red headband on the tortoise.

"My name is Lou, is everyone okay?" he asked. They're fine.

"Yes!" Mimi cheered. "Thank you!" Then, out of the blue...

"Sub-Zero Ice Punch!" a white bear shouted as it fist the air which a blast of white snow formed and barreled into Cherrymon, freezing the tree. There was another blond in the area.

"Hi, I'm Steve," he announced. "It's nice to meet all of you." More help to aid the situation.

"Hey, anything for some extra assistance," Davis smirked. "Now how about we take care of wooden Scrooge?" Cherrymon was cornered. It would be best to surrender.

"Blaze Blaster!" Flareizamon shouted before shooting a red hot beam.

"Ice Blast!" Seadramon, recovered, scorned as it fired a whitish beam at the same target.

"Flower Cannon!" Lillymon called out while a flower bloomed in her hands to unveil a cannon. It shot a green shot to Cherrymon as well.

"V-Laser!" ExVeemon chanted while firing that laser from his chest.

"Pikachu, top it off with Volt Tackle!" Ash ordered. Volt Tackle?

"You got it!" Pikachu agreed as he leaped off Swellow and dove down at Cherrymon in a streaming yellow comet. "Eat this!" The attacks struck Cherrymon all simultaneously. The multiple strikes were too much for the raging tree who was knocked out. The group celebrated the crushing victory. Before long, Benjamin started to lead the Digidestined, Digimon, Ash and Pikachu to Central Park. Ash got a ride on the man/horse who didn't mind extra riders with Maria.

"I guess I wasn't counting on a Pokémon trainer to aid the Digidestined, let alone you," she awed. "But I'll tell you one thing, your Pikachu is the most adorable thing compared to when Digimon are born." That was a rather sweet thing to say.

"Come on, Maria. You're making me blush!" Ash smiled at the quickened friendship with the Digidestined who camped around the US. He saw Lillymon making the rounds.

"Lillymon, what's the status of roundup?" he asked.

"All Digimon are present and accounted for," she reported. "We should be at Central Park any minute." That's good.

"Okay. That should be my way back home." Ash was leaving? Maybe he needed to get moving again, go to his next adventure. That even made Davis do a double take.

"You're not staying?" he gasped. Ash shook his head. His mind had been made up. That had Mimi retreat back to him.

"But why so soon?" she began to plea. "Couldn't you stay at my house? At least for the night? You can stay in my room!" That's an invitation that no one could turn down...but Ash was focused on his new journey.

"I appreciate the offer but I've already caused too much to stay around," he admitted. "Besides, if love is the issue, I would only be holding everyone back, even me." That's deep. Somehow, Davis understood something else. Ash could be afraid of falling in love. Was that it?

"As much as you're my romantic rival, this doesn't sound like you," he doubted. "Are you scared about having a relationship?" He sounded sympathetic.

"I don't know if it's that. It just may be that I'm not ready or know how to start it." Not ready for one? Understandably, Davis knew that Ash was more focused on the creatures back in his world and not really on Yolei or Kari or Mimi for that matter. Finally, the group arrived at a park by a lake. Michael set the laptop down. It was time. Davis rose his D-3 to the monitor.

"Digiport open!" The screen began to flash. For Ash, this was farewell. "Ash, good luck in Sinnoh. The Digidestined will root for you." Even after all that heat between them, Davis sounded like a true friend to Ash who nodded.

"Thanks, Davis." That's when the flash brightened. A second later, it all dimmed. Ash was heading back to Pallet...much to Mimi's, Kari's and Yolei's chagrin. How will they take the sudden departure of Ash?

'Ash, please don't forget about me,' Mimi wished in thought. This story...is far from over.

* * *

TO BE CONTINUED...


	6. Author's Note

Author's note-

My stories will be postponed for some time. My brother, James Hamby, James of Gales, has died this morning, May 14th, 2010. My family is going through the most difficult times since I was born with a heart defect. Please understand that this was not planned in the process but as I had said in one funeral, "Death is understandable yet unexpected."

James enjoyed dragons and ninjas, especially Naruto and Bleach. He was also an avid gamer who sought the challenges oncoming. Still at his ending tender age of 22, there will be ambition that he'll never see accomplished.

James leaves behind his mother, father, younger sister and myself.

James D. Hamby

November 14, 1987-May 14, 2010


	7. BlackWarGreymon & Battle

_Chapter 6:BlackWarGreymon & Battle_

* * *

Back in the DigiWorld, Ash and Pikachu were ready to head back home and prepare for the Sinnoh Region. Their stay on Earth with the Digidestined may have had consequences that Ash didn't want to explore. His latest hook in his fishing pole of charm was Mimi who tagged him for his looks. Wondering if these girls were holding him or him holding the girls back out of some web of romance and intrigue, Ash opted to depart and return to the life he chose before the whole cavernous chaos. Pikachu had removed the collar offered by Gennai but since he was in the DigiWorld, he would still be able to talk like a human. "You sure you wanna leave Kari, Yolei and Mimi so soon?" he questioned his trainer's thoughts. Ash believed that the Digidestined would be able to finish the Digimon roundup from all over the world from Sydney to Paris to even his stop, New York.

"We're not really needed," he murmured. "I'm positive that the Davis and the other will have the Digimon back in this world in no time." Some of the Digimon, including the Cherrymon that Ash and the others whooped on, became happy that they're back home. "Keep in mind, Pikachu. We're not Digidestined. We're Pokémon and Trainer. We have no reason to prolong our stay and do business." Supposedly so, but Pikachu felt that he was backing off of something a little more dire.

"I get that but are you sure that's the only reason?" Ash blankly glared at his partner, wondering what he was meaning. "Kari, Yolei, Mimi... You feel like the bigger problem lies within you, yourself." The names Pikachu darted out seemed to be the love ordeal. "Ash, you're growing up. You have three Digidestined girls who have the heart for you. What you need to do is think about your future. Soon, you'll bore of these adventures. Sure there may be some trainers but you never had Misty or May go, 'Oh, Ash! Forgive me for not coming forward but I should let you know that my heart has yearned for you ever since I first met. I cannot bear this pain of guilt any longer bottled but I wanted you to know that...that I love you!' You get what I mean?" That was Pikachu acting, not admitting. While it did seem like Pikachu was advising him of what to expect, Ash still felt left in the dark about it.

"You're not suggesting the I should stay there and forget about Sinnoh or any of the other regions, are you?" To Pikachu, Ash wasn't getting the memo. All Ash could get his mind on was that next journey. That next journey gave Pikachu a moment to ad-lib Ash's remark.

"Actually, more of inviting her or them to join the new trip, seeing how it feels to find wild Pokémon, thwarting Team Rocket, battling other trainers...that's what I mean." Pikachu was hoping that since Ash learned about the Digidestined, he could teach them about being a Pokémon Trainer. That ain't a bad trade.

"Yeah, but who should we invite? Yolei or TK or probably Joe?" Pikachu chuckled a bit when someone landed in their path back. It was a dark robot-like creature with metal claws and pipes sticking out of it's chest. The head had a helmet with blond hair sticking out of the back. It looked almost human-like. It peered down at Ash and Pikachu. This couldn't bode well.

"You are not Digidestined and Digimon," he noticed. What was your first clue? "But I do sense a heart of justice and determination among you." Was that a good thing or a bad thing? Mr. Tall, Dark and Scary acted like he was on his side, yet that eerie feeling Pikachu had coursing through told him that caution was necessary.

"Why am I getting mixed feelings from you?" he warned. The metallic being swayed not.

"I am BlackWarGreymon, a Digimon that was created from many control spires." That could explain the uneasy feeling. "However, unlike the other 'Digimon' that were created, I possess my own conscience." Ash was intimidated. Never had he faced such a fearsome creature and with a conscience. "May I ask how you found the digital world without the trinkets the Digidestined carry?" Ash wasn't sure if telling him was a good idea. He was another of Arukenimon's callous creations. But he wasn't showing any aggression. Maybe being friendly with him could help out.

"Actually, it was a Digimon that burrowed a tunnel from Server to our world and nearby Pallet Town," he explained. BlackWarGreymon was interested.

"A Digimon burrowing a tunnel? Where can I find this Digimon?" That sounded like a tall order but Ash opted to significantly shorten it.

"LadyDevimon was destroyed. I had help with a couple of Digidestined to end her reign of terror." That name sounded troubling to BlackWarGreymon. But he realized that Ash may have been left with little to do.

"I was correct. I need to reach the world residing the Digidestined. Arukenimon and Mummymon have to be over there. I could use your help." He's a big Digimon who has powers beyond what Ash could conquer in decades. But if Ash was willing to keep peace among the worlds, he had to observe and act.

"Count us in." Pikachu wanted to head back to Pallet, brace for Sinnoh...not return and battle more Digimon. At least BlackWarGreymon was on their side for the moment.

"Hop on." Ash and Pikachu jumped onto BlackWarGreymon's back which he flew high. How high were they willing to go? Back in Odaiba, a white truck was idling by a park where plenty of kids were out for some winter fun. Inside were a shady pair. One was a man covered in blue with his eyes only exposed. The other was a ghost-white skinned woman in a red witch's cone hat, black arm gloves and sunglasses and a red gown with a spider web decoration. They noticed that some of the kids kept themselves isolated from the others.

"My, my," the woman sneered. "We found a few candidates for the Dark Spore treatment." Dark Spore?

"All we need is Ken to return home and we've got all the ingredients for a...uh..." the man fidgeted. "What are we doing with the Dark Spores?"

"Harvesting them, Lame Brain." And Ken was responsible for that? "We need to gather the former Digimon Emperor and remove the Dark Spore from his neck. Then, our client should be able to re-energize the Dark Spore and clone it. While we wait for Ken to return, we're to photograph children that could be in need of these seeds. A tedious task if you harp me." If Ken returned, he's fair game. Meanwhile, Ash and Pikachu, returning from the DigiWorld, and BlackWarGreymon viewed the two from a rooftop of a skyscraper not too far away.

"That's them?" Ash questioned. BlackWarGreymon peered over and saw the man hop out, his giant blue trench coat clouding his body while he wore a weird blue funnel hat. He also appeared to use a cane. An old man who has desires for little kids? Creepy.

"That's Mummymon," he confirmed. If the blue guy was Mummymon, that would mean the woman was Arukenimon. The two were Digimon? You wouldn't tell from the first impression. Their stroll to the park signaled Ash to think they're not here to play Santa Claus.

"That's weird. Why would they go after some children playing in the park? It doesn't make sense." From all Ash knew, they may have been there to kidnap the bunch.

"Maybe. If we act, those children will be easily frightened." Him, easily frightening.

"What we need to do primarily is lure the two from those kids. I'll get their attention." The two retreated from the ledge and formed a plan. Meantime, Arukenimon had her camera out to picture the kids for this slimy client of theirs. One lavender-haired girl seemed a bit hesitant about facing Arukenimon at first sight.

"Excuse me," she tried to reason. "Is it all right if I have you pose for a photo?" The girl wasn't sure about the offer. What could she be plotting?

"W-Why?" she stuttered in a bit of concern. Arukenimon thought up a way to ease her of anything she could unleash.

"Oh, don't be such a worry wart. I'm taking photographs of kids all around Odaiba to create a calendar. So, what do you say?" The girl eased a bit, yet still felt that something didn't fit.

"W-Will it hurt?" A picture shouldn't hurt. What could she be worried about?

"Getting a photograph? It's just a click and done." Quick and painless. However, Ash would be there to stop Arukenimon. First needed to be the attention.

"True, but do you have a permit for such the occasion?" he spoke out. Arukenimon and the girl turned to Ash and Pikachu. How did they get from that rooftop to the street that fast? BlackWarGreymon? Arukenimon scowled at the sight of Ash.

"It's you!" Did Arukenimon recognize Ash from a recent incident? "You and that rodent at the concert!" Yep.

"What, you expecting the Digidestined? They'll be a little bit." Yeah, they're taking care of a few places all over the world.

"So, are you implying that you're _not_ a Digidestined? If so, what makes your business part of ours?" Not phased, Ash sneered Arukenimon down.

"Consider it an insurance check. That and I was brought back by someone you mended." To Arukenimon, it was bad news.

"Y-You don't mean BlackWarGreymon, do you?" Mummymon raced over to Arukenimon's side, ready to assist. Seeing the kids, Ash had to take priority in safety. He was no Digidestined, he had no Digidestined aid...it was him, Pikachu and BlackWarGreymon.

"Everyone, hide behind the wall. You'll be safe." Panicked, the kids did what Ash advised them, ducking behind a tall concrete wall. That's when the fun began.

"You should know not to interfere with Digimon business," Mummymon scolded before he discarded his coat...and revealing something creepy. Much like the name, Mummymon was a mummy...except for the bandanna, jean shorts and an assault rifle he had. Was he really a mummy or a commando? Pikachu was really awed by Mummymon's new look.

("Whoa, that's creepy but cool,") he weighed opinions.

"You may know my name but that's a fraction of what I'm capable of doing. I'm an Ultimate Undead Digimon back from the grave with a vengance. My Snake Bandage will wrap you up and Necrophobia will make sure you won't see me anymore." Ash was a bit hindered by Mummymon's new look, but impressed at the same time.

"I'll admit, you may be a bad guy but that look is awesome," he complimented. "I might want to have that as my Halloween costume next year." Can't argue with Ash's approval.

"You think so? Nice to see some positive outcomes to this." Arukenimon sighed at the notion. This wasn't the place to make good on enemies.

"You don't realize what position you're in," she scorned. "Allow me to punish you even more when I transform." She shed her robe and turned to a red horned spider with a human top. She still had her white hair though. Ash and Pikachu were not too pleased with this one. "You've walked into my spider web by returning to Japan and soon will become my meal. I'm an Ultimate Demon Spider Digimon with a hideous Acid Mist attack along with my Spider Thread with will ensnare my lunch in no time." Two Ultimale Digimon and all Ash had was Pikachu. Talk about the worst case scenario.

"You ready, Pikachu?" Ash asked. Pikachu nodded and braced for what was to come.

("Just don't forget about that aura you have,") Pikachu pointed out. Reminded, Ash closed his eyes and focused, concentrating on a power within him. Soon enough, a blue light began to emit from the body. This had to be the aura that Pikachu was talking about. Mummymon rose his rifle, ready to bash Ash. Somehow, all had forgotten about how Ash entered this realm.

"Black Tornado!" shouted BlackWarGreymon. That's when a rushing swirl zipped into and smashed into Mummymon. The blast propelled Mummymon and knocked his rifle from him to Ash who willfully aimed it back at his attacker. Not so fast.

"Spider Thread!" Arukenimon shouted before spitting out a webbing string and snagging it around the rifle which she yanked and returned to Mummymon.

"What do you say two Pidgeys with one Thunderbolt, Pikachu?" Ash suggested. Of course. With the rifle in the Spider Thread and Mummymon holding it, Pikachu could hit them both. Let's hope that the thread is conductible.

("Here goes!") Pikachu wished as he leaped into the sky. ("Thunderbolt!") ZAP! Pikachu hit the thread in between the two...but shredded the thread instead of catching the two in a voltage storm. That was a setback. Neither Digimon was injured.

"Nice try, little boy," Arukenimon sneered. "Acid Mist!" She spat out a thick green substance from her mouth at Ash but was blocked by BlackWarGreymon who swatted the gunk away with its metal claw. "Are you sure you wanna protect someone like him? He doesn't belong in this world, nor the DigiWorld for that matter. All you're protecting is some kid from another world." BlackWarGreymon wasn't intimidated.

"Perhaps, but at least he fights with a purpose," BlackWarGreymon differed. "Despite the truth of him not considered a Digidestined, he can fight Digimon like the rest." Ash felt the aura peak inside and chose to race in. Mummymon recovered and trained the rifle...but chose his arm first. Why?

"Snake Bandage!" he shouted as some of his wraps were slung at Ash. Ash saw the wraps and dove to the side, right into a snowbank. He's okay. Ash used the snowbank to regain his footing but took a clump of snow. Seeing that he could use a snowball to his advantage, he focused his aura onto the ball.

"Hey, Mummymon!" he called out. "Snowball fight!" Man, talk about childish... Ash pitched the snowball in which Mummymon was simply going to swat away...only he was unaware of the aura infused. KABOOM! Mummymon went flying right toward the truck. He landed half a foot in front. Ash chuckled at that unique move. "Now that's what I call a little kick." What was so _little _about it? Arukenimon and BlackWarGreymon were shocked at what just occurred. How could a little snowball provide such a big blast?

"What was that?" she shivered. No, not because of the cold. As Mummymon was getting onto his feet, a black sedan rolled up. The fighting halted. Suddenly, out came a pale raven-haired man in a purple trench coat. His disfigured grin set off alarms in Ash and BlackWarGreymon. "Y-Yukio! What are you-"

"I was wondering what was keeping you from bringing the kids," he murmured. He saw Ash and BlackWarGreymon and realized that these two were hindering their progress. "So, you must be BlackWarGreymon, Arukenimon's puppet of 100 control spires." The growling of BlackWarGreymon seemed to indicate that this guy was not here to make peace. Ash knew it from how loudly he growled.

"This guy's bad news?" he wondered.

"Something about this human isn't settling with me," BlackWarGreymon motioned. "But what?" Yukio approached the two. Ash was on guard.

"Oh, come now," Yukio grinned. "This is the first meeting with you and you wanna start a fight? Where are your manners?" Don't blame them if they see you as suspicious. "All I'm doing is bringing these kids back to their parents so that they can be safe of any raucous activity and hypothermia that may set in." With two Ultimate hostiles?

"What makes you think I can just give you the kids?" Ash demanded an answer. Pikachu was ready to back him up.

"Well, I had a friend in the police department. I know that these kids should be taken care of." A friend with the police? He rested his hand on Ash's head. Seemingly nothing wrong. "Besides, I've worked with parents of the Digidestined too. Is that enough to convince that I'm a good guy?" Maybe, but you still look creepy.

"I-I guess it makes sense."

"Good." Yukio turned to BlackWarGreymon once more and stuck out a hand. Suddenly, something shot out and blasted BlackWarGreymon back yards from the area. Ash was tricked. Before he could act, however, Yukio had another blast and sent Ash into a wall, viciously hard. Ash felt his head bang into the wall, knocking him out. He fell onto his stomach unconscious. BlackWarGreymon was reeling from the strike. Now what? "Gather the kids. I'll start the hypnosis at HQ."

"Right!" Arukenimon and Mummymon acknowledged before going to the other side of the wall and rounding up the kids. The children were screaming for help but Ash couldn't come back around. Pikachu tried to shake him but it was no use. The kids were herded into the truck before peeling out, leaving Ash to writhe in pain and failure. Someone come and get him before he freezes. Well, Ash woke up in someone's apartment slowly and in pain. He clasped his head, still feeling the jolt of being propelled into the side of the building.

"Oh, you're up," an older female acknowledged. Ash opened an eye to see to see an older blond female. "You don't seem at 100%. You did take a nasty blow to the head." That would explain the bandaged head. "Oh, before you ask how I know you, Ash, I did find this gadget in your pocket." She knew Ash? None of the Digidestined tipped her off. She pulled out a red hand-held device with a flip cover. One press of the button flipped the cover and revealed a screen. That screen lit up and showed a picture of Ash with his red cap on.

"I am Dexter, a Pokédex programmed by Professor Birch and Professor Oak for trainer Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town," it computed with a male voice. "My function is to provide Ash with information on Pokémon. Should I be lost or stolen, I cannot be replaced." A self describing hand-held device...nifty.

"When I realized what it was and who you were, I scanned your cute little mouse or Pikachu for that matter to help understand." Okay, but how did she know that Ash was hurt?

"How...did I wind up...here?" he groaned a question. Yeah, how did that happen?

"Oh, that? Well, it just so happens that I was returning from some last-minute holiday shopping when I thought I saw Oikawa driving away. I wanted to speak with him but he drove off before I had a chance and that's when I saw you. It was fortunate that it was near by here." Talk about luck. That's when Ash remembered about the kids at the park.

"What about the other kids?" The woman seemed baffled. More kids?

"I didn't see any kids other than you. I do hope that TK returns soon." Ash was getting more worried. The kids had to be in trouble, being held captive by Arukenimon and Mummymon. He tried to get up but was restrained. "Whoa, Ash. Don't move so much!" The woman was worried about Ash's safety. Ash struggled as Pikachu made it into the scene, having the collar back on.

"You're hurt!" he squeaked in fear. "Take it easy!" Hearing how concerned Pikachu was made Ash settle. While Ash wanted to control right and wrong, his own health was a priority on Pikachu's and the woman's behalf.

"Guess I'll wait for the rest," he surrendered. He hated to sit out for a while, even if it was for his own health. The Digidestined were scattered all over the world, leaving Odaiba roughly undefended. All Ash could do was wait for the inevitable. However, an idea erupted in his head. "I'll need his gloves." Gloves? What could be so special about a pair of gloves? Was he thinking about a pair back in the Pokémon World...or could it be the head injury speaking?

* * *

TO BE CONTINUED... (Thank you all for not only your patience but support while my family and I had to deal with the loss of James of Gales. I've finished one of his stories on his request. If anyone would like to take any of his other stories, it would be greatly appreciated.)


	8. Regroup & Aura

_Chapter 7: Regroup & Aura_

* * *

A pair of gloves? What could be so significant about a pair of gloves? To Ash, those gloves seem to be the key in defeating Arukenimon and Mummymon...and whoever that last guy was. The blond was blank in thought. She thought the injury to his head made him think in some sort of riddle. "Ash?" she tried to call. "What are you talking about? What gloves?" It didn't really dawn on Pikachu for the moment but that's when he remembered what Ash may have been mentioning.

"Of course!" he voiced. "Sir Aaron's Gloves of Aura which are at the Tree of Beginning." A special type of gloves. No wonder Ash seemed to think about gloves at a time where Yukio and the Digimon had kidnapped children. However, the plan couldn't commence without Ken who was in Mexico City around the Aztec ruins. It was something about a Dark Spore treatment. "But Ash, why do you need those gloves? You know how powerful your aura is, right? You knocked Mummymon for a loop when you infused it into that snowball." The blond bit her fingernails. All of this was so much, so fast that she couldn't keep up or understand. Suddenly, the phone rang. She picked up the receiver.

"Takashi residence. Nancy here." Pause in silence... "So it's true, Hiroaki?" … "Yeah, I have a boy claiming to be there." … "TK's where? With your dad in Paris? Isn't Matt with him?" That Ash was swift to answer.

"Actually, Tai is with him," he pointed out. "Matt's in Mexico with Ken." Hearing that, Nancy had the information but wondered how the heck he knew.

"Were you with them when they chose where?" Ash bobbed a nod.

"I was with Davis in New York. But how do you know Matt and TK so much? Were you an older sister to them?" Older...sister? Nancy hung up the phone, ready to confront Ash.

"Do I look that young?" Ash huffed a nervous chuckle. "I'm actually their mother." The one who gave birth to them? That made sense too.

"Sorry I asked."

"Don't worry about it." Ash sighed, flustered at how that spiraled. "Now, these gloves that once belonged to this Sir Aaron...this is, of course, back where you're from, right?" Back to that subject...

"You see, back hundreds of years ago, there was a war between two factions. In the middle of the chaos was the Cameran Palace where the factions would meet. Sir Aaron wasn't a member of either faction. Instead, he had the title of Aura Guardian. He and his Pokémon, Lucario, had gone ahead to find a way to end the war and the source would be the largest tree that was seen from the palace: The Tree of Beginning. However, Aaron trapped Lucario in the sapphire jewel on his staff so that he would save Lucario for a later time as he sacrificed himself to help revive the life of the tree. Hundreds of years passed when I won the Cameran Tournament and was crowned to watch the ball later that day. And that's when Lucario reemerged, thinking I was his late master. He told me that he thought I was him due to the level of aura that I had no clue about. Then again, I did have Wizardmon in me at the time so the power had to have spiked enough for Lucario to think I was super powerful. All of us had gone to the Tree of Beginning when a wild Mew had taken Pikachu and Meowth there. It was then that we realized that Mew was actually so ill, it would die. Lucario and I used our auras to restore Mew's health but I was shoved aside to where Lucario sacrificed himself. It does haunt me to this day that Lucario sacrificed himself instead of having me help."

What a way to go. Nancy realized that Ash witnessed more moments of horrid than she could anticipate. "I'm sorry you had to go through so much." The fact that Ash had this aura sounded like he needed those gloves in order to invoke the aura within him. "So these gloves you were mentioning...you need them to bring out the aura that's 'buried,' right?" Ash nodded, confirming Nancy's guess. "But how are you going to get there? You're stuck in Odaiba." True.

"I guess we need to wait until the others get back." Easier said than done...unless you look out the window. Imperialdramon's back, landing in the same park where they departed for that worldwide ratification. "Maybe now would be a good time to keep my mouth closed." Ash got to his feet but Nancy wanted him to settle.

"Oh no you don't. You're still injured." Ash grumbled at being denied but had to understand her concern. Before long, TK entered the door. Boy, won't he be surprised. He opened the door with his eyes closed.

'Man, I don't like the fact that Davis sent Ash back through the DigiWorld,' he thought. 'At least I would've introduced him to Catherine. She would be a more interesting match than Kari or Yolei.'

"Hey, TK," Ash teased. Hearing his voice, TK turned and spotted Ash, just removing his bandages.

"Ash? I thought you gone back." Ash huffed a chuckle before he got serious with what happened.

"You see, it boiled down like this." TK listened intently to Ash's brief story of his encounter with Arukenimon and Mummymon and how he needed to get to the Tree of Beginning. For TK, it was serious business. "...And that's that." It was troubling.

"BlackWarGreymon seems to want to find a true meaning on Earth rather than the DigiWorld. This is a problem. But I'm not sure an ancient pair of gloves will do much."

"Not alone, per say." A nod told TK that Ash had more than a pair of gloves ready to fit his sleeve. TK was quick to plot a plan.

"I'll e-mail any Digidestined with a winged Digimon that can take you there. I'm sure one will guide you to the Tree of Beginning to retrieve the Aura Gloves. Meantime, head straight home and start packing. Once this is done, I'm sure either Kari or Yolei will get you to Sinnoh." That made Ash uneasy. He cringed at the thought of one of the two girls who've gone lovesick on him, more frustrating when you count Mimi. "I take it you'd like a male to escort you?" Ash shook a denial to that.

"If you...if you had to choose between Kari or Yolei or Mimi..." The concerning crack in Ash's fear dawned on TK. He began to understand why Ash left Earth from New York in the first place.

"Mimi, too? Ash, don't get the wrong idea." Ash was curious to know of TK's piece. "I'm rather envious of you. I mean, if I was a female, I'd go after you myself." Ash jumped in a bit of fear, thinking how TK could be a girl and he...or she in his mind would envelop Ash.

"Am I that attractive? How do you know it's me and not Pikachu they're after?" Pikachu didn't appreciate being placed on the same ship as Ash.

"Hey, hey!" he shouted. "The subject is you, not me!" Are you sure, Pikachu? Poor Ash couldn't fathom the fact that he had multiple admirers in the possibility.

"Hey, if LadyDevimon drilled that hole some time prior to like during the first trip some time ago," TK compared. "Look, you should be fortunate that you've got people here who would like to take you in." Ash knew but still felt as if he didn't really belong with them.

"I'm a trainer, TK," he tried to deny. TK believed that it wasn't a big deal.

"So?" That's his reply? One tiny word?

"All I'm good for is battle with my Pokémon, not loving people. And me with a Digidestined would be like water and oil. There's no way we'd match and one would hold back the other whether it's gym battles, contests to keeping the digital world in check. It won't work." That would explain why Ash was hesitant about falling for someone in this world. Now TK saw the light of the situation.

"Now you make sense. I thought it was fear but it's actually doubt and now I understand." Even Patamon had to believe Ash's saying.

"I never thought a complication involving one's personality was the reason of your unwillingness to say that you love Kari or Yolei," he realized. "Though Mimi is a tricky one to figure out." Patamon, you're not helping.

"While I do get it, that's not really a problem. We've got more than enough Digidestined to battle this threat and perhaps you've already done enough damage to benefit us." Ash nodded, almost surrendering to the thought of aiding the Digidestined further than needed. "So, I'll send you home to get prepared for the Tree of Beginning as well as Sinnoh."

"Thanks," Ash acknowledged. It would take a few minutes to set up the portal. The gate was open.

"I hope you'll be ready. This will be no cakewalk from here to there and back and then further there." TK, could you repeat that? He forwarded his D-3. "Digiport Open!" A flash on the screen prompted Ash to vanish. With Ash gone, hopefully back to Pallet, TK began to ask around for escort service to aid Ash. Yolei got the message. Kari got the message. Sora, Izzy and Davis as well. So, who'll join Ash over to the Tree of Beginning? Ash was back in Pallet Town, finally. As he began to pack up for the double trip, Kari, Yolei, Mimi, Izzy and the Digimon emerged from the tunnel. For Mimi and Izzy, this was their first time in the Pokémon World.

"So, this is the Pokémon World," Mimi, coming from New York City, NY, USA, awed.

"Prodigious!" Izzy huffed. "Just imagine the studies of Pokémon and the relations to Digimon that I can research. And maybe..." Maybe what? 'What if there could be ways of mating along the two categories of creatures. A hybrid of Pokémon/Digimon creatures may invoke new and unique traits that could expand the natures infinitely.' An experimentation of uniting a Pokémon and Digimon? Someone stop him before anything ugly becomes an attention-getter. Even Yolei believed that Izzy wanted to try mixing a Pokémon and Digimon for some sort of new species.

"If you're going to experiment on mating rituals between Pokémon and Digimon, can that be saved until after we take care of this problem?" Yolei grumbled. Poor Izzy was found out. All he could do was scratch the back of his head.

"I'm rather curious about this whole Tree of Beginning business," Gatomon meowed. "Is that the birthplace of Pokémon?" Not a bad question. Even Kari was wondering about where Pokémon stem from.

"I think Gatomon's onto something," she backed her cat Digimon. "Being born in the Tree of Beginning seems to be plausible for the beginning of life, right?" Thinking caps on, Izzy, Mimi and Yolei had a moment to wonder about the possibility of starting life in this named tree.

"We can wonder about what the Tree contains," Tentomon buzzed. "What TK did say was that it's also the grave site of this Sir Aaron. We can only assume the worst when we get there." Izzy agreed. Now was the time to rendezvous with Ash.

"Well, let's get into town and find Ash," Izzy suggested. The group confirmed before rushing into town. Kari and Yolei led the way, knowing the streets of Pallet Town better than the others. They arrived at Ash's house when the door opened. However, it wasn't Ash. He was shorter, wearing glasses and a green polo t-shirt. That made Kari and Yolei gasp.

"Max?" they wondered. Max? The new raven-haired boy shot a look of surprise to the group of Digidestined that came to see Ash. He did recognize the two young females.

"Kari, Yolei!" he cheered as he hopped over to meet them. "Man, it's been a while." To the two, it had been.

"That's for sure," Yolei giggled. Kari noticed something wrong. Maybe it was something in the past.

"Where's May?" she questioned. May?

"She's setting herself in New Bark Town, getting ready to begin her next journey to be top coordinator." This May... Max seemed to know what Kari was asking about.

"Older sister's in Johto, I see." Ah, that would be it. "Why didn't you go with her?" There had to be a reason for the brother not to support the sibling.

"Well, actually, I was on my way back home to Petalburg City in the Hoenn Region so I had to see Ash once more before I did. I'm gonna help my dad with Gym preparations." Someone's a big boy now. "What about you?" It's a little more serious with the Digidestined.

"We're going to take Ash to the Tree of Beginning to retrieve Sir Aaron's gloves," Mimi notified. Max gulped. That could mean that he's been there.

"A situation where he needs someone's gloves?" Izzy nodded. "Great. Since he's not here..." Where could he have been?

"Prof. Oak's lab?" Hawkmon guessed. Maybe.

"Let's go see," Yolei pointed. The group managed to reach Oak's white house with the windmills. There, Ash was at the gate, walking out with Pikachu. What business did he have? He was also wearing new clothes: a black travel vest which had a yellow stripe around the stomach. Pikachu heard the charging group with Max.

("They're here!") he announced. Pikachu removed his collar once more. Ash turned, face flushed seeing the three girls who...the only way it would be tougher on him if there were more girls who liked him also joining the festivities. It's just the way the stories were going.

"Ash, what's this about you going to get Sir Aaron's gloves?" Max questioned Ash's motive. Ash and Max were good buddies from Ash's reaction for him to face the music.

"I need to release the power to help these guys," he explained. The aura power that he tried to use. "You saw me bring it out at the Tree of Beginning. I need those gloves." Max realized but didn't want Ash to get further involved with Digidestined work, even if his life depended on it.

"You saw from those Time Flowers. Sir Aaron's aura was sapped curing Mew as well as Lucario's. They died trying to help. Just imagine if they were used to do harm, you'll drain the aura faster than Pikachu's Thunderbolt." Max was overly concerned about Ash but the evidence seemed to point onto the past and the results of over exhausting one's aura. Ash? Not too worried about it.

"Max... keep in mind that I'm not alone in this battle. We will conquer this threat." No, he's got the Digidestined as backup. Still, the fears of Ash dying from using his aura kept Max from wanting to keep Ash's health in check.

"Of course it can be conquered, but your life is more important than a mission that can be handled by the Digidestined." Ash had a way to tell Max that everything was in good hands.

"I know what the Time Flowers contained. The reason they lost their lives were because they exhausted their aura individually. I still have Pikachu who can be an impressive asset. And heck, Kari's a trainer with her Butterfree." Yeah, whatever happened to Butterfree? Kari brought out a red/white ball and released Butterfree from the confines.

"Butterfree, why don't you spend some time with Ash's Pokémon?" she offered. Butterfree agreed before flying off. Ash was back with the talking.

"I understand that you're worried about me, but I'm worried about all the kids who were kidnapped by Arukenimon and Mummymon. They need the most help and I don't want to know what'll happen to them if we don't hurry and get back to Odaiba." That's how serious Ash wanted to help solve this. "I let those kids down, even with BlackWarGreymon by my side. I want to redeem myself." It finally dawned on Max. Redemption...

"Ash is a real honest person when it comes to crises like this," Mimi offered her say. "And knows what to do when on the moment's notice. That's why I...we fell in love for him." Kari and Yolei bobbed nods, expressing reddening cheeks. Finally, Max agreed. He got the report of what needed to be done.

"Then let me come, too," he decided. The Digidestined and Ash were surprised. Max wanting to help? "I can help get to the center of the Tree of Beginning." A tour guide approach... Mimi agreed.

"Very well, but you'll be riding on Lillymon." Palmon's Ultimate Form?

"Whenever you're ready guys," Palmon geared. The flashes of the devices brightened the area. The Digimon began to transform. "Palmon digivolve to...Togemon!" Champion Level Togemon made a brief appearance. "Togemon digivolve to...Lillymon!" Now, Lillymon came out.

"Tentomon digivolve to...Kabuterimon!" Tentomon buzzed. From the glow, Tentomon was a lot bigger and bluer...and pretty nasty-looking. It appeared to be a giant fly with half of the limbs and wearing a hard light brown helmet.

"Hawkmon digivolve to...Aquillamon!" sounded off Hawkmon. Aquillamon entered the scene. Gatomon was last.

"Digi-armor Energize!" Kari shouted. This was different.

"Gatomon armor digivolve to...Nefertimon, the angel of light!" Gatomon called out. She was no longer a cat but a giant white winged sphinx with gold cuffs around the hooves. Once landing, Lillymon knelt to Max's level.

"Well, Max, what do you think of little old me, now?" she cooed. From his awing expression... captivated.

"First time seeing you," Max gulped, trying not to "fall on his face." "I don't know what to say." Lillymon giggled before...interactions with Digimon and humans seemed to be in a rather stunning study. Lillymon gave Max a kiss. Forget waking up and smelling the roses when you're wearing some on your lips.

"Lillymon!" Mimi roared.

"What? Can't I enjoy someone who shares the cuteness like Ash? Besides, you did admit it yourself." Ouch.

"Well, we should get going if these kids need to be rescued," Kabuterimon acknowledged. The group agreed. Izzy, Yolei, Max and Kari boarded their rides as Mimi and Pikachu hopped on Kabuterimon. Ash had a choice: Nefertimon or Aquillamon? Kari or Yolei? Ash hopped onto Aquillamon. Kari became rather devastated. It was as if she wanted him to ride with her.

"Let's go," Nefertimon told Kari. The fliers lifted off, heading north to find the Tree of Beginning. So far, it was smooth sailing, nothing to hamper their trip. That was about to be short lived. Out of nowhere, a helicopter raced in after the fliers. The black helicopter had a red "R" on the nose. Ash looked back and saw the chopper, realizing that trouble's here.

"Not them!" he shouted. "Not now!" Inside the cockpit were two adults in white uniforms with red "R's" on their chests and black arm-length gloves and boots. They were also joined by a white cat with a coin on it's forehead. One was a woman with blood red hair slicked back to appear like a wave, donned in a mid-drift shirt and skirt. The other was a male with a basic schoolboy's cut with a not-so-basic blue hair color, dressed with a long-sleeved shirt and pants.

"Listen, is that the twerp's voice I hear?" the redhead teased.

"It sounded like him, pretty loud and clear," the blue-haired acknowledged. This was an interesting mockery they were performing.

"On the wind..."

"Pass the stars..."

"In your ears!" the cat sneered.

"Bringing chaos at a breakneck pace," continued the redhead.

"Dashing hope and bringing fear in its place," added the blue-haired.

"A rose by any name is just as sweet..."

"When everything's worse, our work is complete!"

"Jessie!"

"James!

"And Meowth, that's a name!" the cat identified itself.

"Putting the do-gooders in their place," Jessie started.

"We're Team Rocket," James named themselves.

"And we're in your face," Meowth finished. Just what Ash needed. He gritted the appearance of Team Rocket and seemed rather annoyed by what they just mentioned.

"Where did you guys get _that_ motto, a cereal box?" he scorned loudly. Jessie got a bit ticked from the criticized comment.

"Hey, we needed a new motto for the new quest for your Pikachu!" she yelled. Did you really need a motto? Honestly!

"Besides, we can take Pikachu as well as these rare creatures!" James promised. Ash needed to shake Team Rocket off their tails and soon. The helicopter had a rocket which became unveiled from the bottom of the vehicle. Quickly, he turned to Kari.

"Kari, you think you can disable the propellers?" he requested. Sensing that Ash had an idea, Kari bobbed a nod.

"Leave it to me!" she grinned. Nefertimon dipped and slowed down to get beneath the underbelly of the helicopter. James saw the move, knowing that they were in trouble. Nefertimon eyed the rotating propellers, her target locked.

"Rosetta Stone!" it chanted as a pink light illuminated. Out shot a stone tablet, fired directly at the spinning blades. Direct hit! KABOOM! The contact ruptured the blades, already feigning on the controls. Jessie fought but with three of the four blades totaled, it was useless. The helicopter was going down.

"They made it look too easy!" Meowth realized too late. Let's hit the bottom. BLAM! The helicopter crashed and the Rockets flew out.

"Of course we were in over our heads!" James whined. "They weren't Pokémon to begin with!" Some people fail for obvious reasons. James explained that willfully.

"Leave it to Jessie to come up with a way to go overboard and underachieved." Both cat and man glared at Jessie who got a bit frightened.

"Like you guys could've warned me about what they had in store!" she defended. They continued to soar out of sight.

"Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again!" they screamed in unison. Bye! Now it was smooth sailing for the Digidestined, Ash and Max. Kari and Nefertimon returned, receiving fives from Ash and Yolei for a job well done.

"Nice one!" Ash cheered. It didn't take long until they spotted a giant rocky tree, hundred times larger than the trees below it. "There it is! The Tree of Beginning!" They've arrived. Once landing, the Digimon reverted back to their training forms. With that, they entered the small cavern below the giant tree. Through the tunnel, the group prepared for somethings that could complicate the mission.

"I can only wonder what we'll find in here," Mimi wondered. Wait no longer. They were inside the tree. Inside looked like paradise. Pokémon were strewn throughout the giant area of different sizes, shapes and types, almost as if there was eternal peace. Maybe it was eternal peace.

"My gosh!" Yolei gasped. "I can't believe the tree has all these Pokémon in such an isolated area and in absolute serenity." A real awe inspiring sight.

"This way!" Max shouted as he ran up the tunnel. The rest followed pursuit...except for Mimi. Something was rubbing her leg. It was a small pink four-legged creature with a horn on its forehead and buck teeth. Why was it nuzzling on Mimi's leg?

"Can I help you, little guy?" she asked. All the little guy wanted seemed to be a pickup. No, not a truck! Mimi picked the creature up, cradling it near her chest. "I do need to help my friends. You can come along if you want." The creature just wanted to feel a warm body. That or it saw Mimi for something unusual. Mimi was trailing as the rest pursue the gloves worn by Sir Aaron. Izzy took notice that the tree bark was solid as a rock, not hollow.

"I get it," he figured. "The Tree of Beginning isn't a tree but a rock formation to represent a tree." So this tree of epic sizes wasn't wood but rock? That could explain why it's been up for so many years. Soon enough, the team reached an open sky portion where there were a series of branches acting like a mix of a broken bridge and a platform jumper's paradise. Mario? Mario! We found your new play set where you can practice with Luigi!

"We need to be careful crossing the limbs to get to the other side," Ash stated the obvious. "Not only are we walking on narrow branches, winds will try to gust us off." That...wasn't obvious.

"Tentomon and I can get to the other side with ease," Hawkmon noted. "We can escort the other Digimon to the other side." Game plan... Yolei nodded. Hawkmon carried Gatomon as Tentomon helped Palmon across. Just as they made it to the other side, a massive blast of wind blew out from below. Everyone ducked to avoid the enormous winds. It subsided after a few seconds.

"Ash, I hate to correct you," Kari murmured. "But gusts are not that strong." How "strong" are gusts suppose to be?

"I'd estimate that to an F-2 tornado's wind speed," Izzy studied. F-2? That's strong. Mario, forget the invitation. Stick to kicking Bowser's tail and protecting Peach. Now's the time. Ash and Kari began to cross, Max and Mimi behind. They hurried to try and pass before another blast of wind knocked them far away. That's when Ash noticed the creature in Mimi's arms.

"What the heck are you doing with a Nidoran?" he questioned. Mimi had no time to answer at this point.

"Later," she scolded. "First, we cross." Ash put the wonder to the side for the moment and aided Mimi across. Izzy and Pikachu began to show some concern. Ash and Kari could be struck with another blast of wind.

"They can't stay out there for too long," Izzy advised. Ash turned to Kari, ready to move. They began to crawl to the other side, hoping that the next gust doesn't catch them. Ash made it across but it was too late for Kari. Another blasting shot of wind tagged her from behind, propelling toward Ash. Kari was too close for Ash to evade. BOOM! The wind smacked Kari into Ash, sending them further back to the wall. Ash was still recovering from his bout with Yukio. Who knows what injuries the impact could worsen. Ash dug his feet into the rocky floor. The force looked to be too much. That's when Ash was slowing to a stop with a pinkish light emanating on him and Kari. Ash and Kari were okay but by who or what? Ash and Kari turned to see a pinkish cat with a long tail glowing a pink light.

"Mew?" he gasped. The floating cat giggled. Ash and Kari sighed a relieving tone, knowing that Mew spared them from serious harm. The rest of the Digidestined hurried over to the other side with little difficulty. As soon as Yolei reached, she hugged Ash.

"I was so worried for a second," she cried a bit. Ash patted her in the back to tell her noting had gone wrong.

"Okay, Yolei." Everyone across, the group proceeded onward toward their destination, Mew joining. Finally, they reached the largest area in the Tree of Beginning. The core.

"This is it?" Izzy wondered.

"This is it," Max acknowledged. "The tree's center." The group gazed inside the confines of the core, noticing two bulges of crystal. Were they Sir Aaron and Lucario? Nothing was inside of them. Ash scanned around to see a pair of black arm-length gloves with a large blue oval on each, knuckle up.

"This is it," Ash claimed. "These are the gloves." The gloves of Sir Aaron. Mew began to act defensive, swiping the gloves from Ash. "Mew?" Mew replaced the gloves onto the larger pile of crystal, goading Ash to re-retrieve it. Once he snagged the gloves, the crystal began to shine. Ash was so stunned that he was easily consumed by the growing light.

"Ash!" Kari and Yolei shouted in fear. The light formed a dome, Ash being shielded from anyone else. Inside, Ash was met by two figures. One was a raven-haired man in snazzy black and blue royal clothing as he held a staff with a sapphire diamond on top. The other was a blue jackal-like creature looked to be about Ash's height, but had spikes embedded on its wrists and chest. Ash was captivated.

"S-Sir Aaron? Lucario?" That's the legendary Sir Aaron? Who'd have thought?

"So, you are the new line of aura possessors, are you not?" Aaron observed. "Lucario advised me about this information when he crystallized." By crystallized, did he mean died?

"I-I am. Though, I'm unaware of what my aura is for." Aaron placed a hand on Ash and closed his eyes. A few seconds later, Aaron removed his hand. He was showing a grinning smug. Was something funny?

"Yours is unique in more abilities than I or Lucario would've imagined. Your aura is Mirror." Mirror? "Mirror works in two unique fashions, reflect and copy. Reflect allows you to redirect an attack back to the sender while copy allows you to study and emulate the move used on the sender." Reflect and copy...they could be of use.

"_**Ash,"**_ Lucario called. **_"I assume that you wanted to borrow Sir Aaron's gloves. The truth is that your aura is far stronger and more flexible than Sir Aaron or myself."_** Could this mean that Ash didn't need the gloves after all?

"But how can I use my aura if I can't bring it out myself," Ash wondered. Aaron scoffed at Ash's concern.

"I could tell you, but that's an issue you need to handle on your own," he replied. "I learned the same way. When the moment comes can tell the out coming truth." The out coming truth? What does that mean? In a flash, everything was gone...except for Ash and Mew. Kari, Mimi and Yolei ran over to Ash who remained stationary. He also had his eyes closed...and his instincts kicked in.

'I sense the three girls approaching me. They're worried...and after that light show, I don't particularly blame them.' Kari reached out, Ash sensing it. 'Kari's reaching out. Try not to react.' Kari clasped her hand onto the raven-haired trainer. No flinch... Then, he opened his eyes. Time.

"Ash?" Kari called so worried about the issue. Finally, Ash opened his eyes.

"Well, guys?" Everyone wondered what he had in mind as he turned around. "Ready to go cleanse this virus?" Ash sounded ready. Sound of determination stoked the rest to gear up for the battle against Arukenimon and Mummymon, as well as Yukio.

"Ready when you are," Yolei pumped. On that note, the group vacated the tree, Odaiba bound. They would need to hurry. Back in Odaiba, Davis, Ken, Cody and their Digimon had confronted a female having what appeared to be a headache. The pain in her head was so immense, she bellowed a blood curdling scream.

"My head!" the girl yelled. "What's...happening to me?" By the way, she was glowing a crimson red. This was not good. She released her head and her eyes lost their shine.

"Does anyone notice the glow on her?" Veemon wondered.

"Never mind the glow," Davis pointed out. "Check out the action in her hair." Wormmon saw a red plant bulb popping from the top of her head.

"The Dark Spore is sprouting!" he warned. That's bad news. Before the boys could react, the flower blossomed.

"Talk about a full bloom," Armadillomon murmured. That's when a familiar laugh echoed the park they were in. Yukio had arrived.

"Oh no, it's Oikawa!" Cody jumped in defense as he unsheathed a wooden sword. Not far from Yukio were the two Digimon, Arukenimon and Mummymon.

"His fan club's here too," Davis spotted. "What do they want?" In hindsight, it would be the girl with the flower on her head.

"I'd give you three guesses and they all point to her," Wormmon replied. To Davis and Ken, this was unacceptable.

"No way," Ken growled as he brought out his D-3. Davis too.

"Right," he agreed. Veemon and Wormmon were going to transform once more.

"Wormmon digivolve to...Stingmon!" Wormmon chanted. Wormmon got back to Stingmon formation.

"Veemon digivolve to...Ex-Veemon!" Veemon shouted as he became Ex-Veemon once more. "Ex-Veemon..."

"Stingmon..." All together now...

"DNA digivolve to...Paildramon!" they called upon and united...to become Paildramon. Already, it fired it's clawed cables at the other Digimon. Mummymon swatted the cables away from them while Yukio turned his attention to the girl.

"Now, if you'll excuse me," he muttered before he and the girl faced each other and Yukio placed a hand on the flower, a dark mist emitting out of her and into him. Wasn't that dangerous to do?

"Get your filthy hands off Noriko!" Cody snarled. He raised in, the rounded sword cocked.

"You're not going anywhere!" Mummymon jumped in and flung the Snake Bandage. The wraps snagged but it wasn't Cody it got. It wrapped Ash. Talk about timing.

"Miss me?" he mocked. Duration or accuracy? Best guess on duration. Mummymon tried to reel Ash in. One smile told someone that Ash was doing the reckless. One good yank and Ash was sent flying. He flew passed the Digimon and right at Yukio...or so it seemed. Ash tackled Noriko from Yukio. They tumbled for a few seconds before resting and Ash getting up by the time Max arrived. "Max, watch this girl."

"You got it," he agreed. The boys were glad to have someone keeping her protected.

"Noriko's safe," Ken sighed. Don't relax yet.

"Terra Destroyer!" sounded...BlackWarGreymon? A giant red orb rained down and nailed the Digimon. Arukenimon and Mummymon were knocked down. BlackWarGreymon landed just as Izzy and the girls made it as well.

"Well, now," Yukio scoffed. "Round two, I take it?" BlackWarGreymon watched as the dark mist emanated bigger out of him. "So, what to do with the so-called trainer who interferes?" That's when another BlackWayGreymon showed up...only this was more vibrant in the color department. Orange arms and legs, red hair, the shinier armor...

"WarGreymon, you made it!" Paildramon recognized.

"Yeah and just in time," he repsonded. BlackWarGreymon and Yukio faced off.

"So, that's your game," he murmured. "You desire power to replace loneliness. If this what grants you happiness, you're living in a dream." Loneliness? Yukio was lonely? Yukio tried not to listen to BlackWarGreymon's convincing truth. It made Ash think.

'Loneliness?' he pondered in thought. 'Is that what made this guy snap? To prove the power of isolation?' He began to activate his aura. That's when Ash saw a figure, one larger than Yukio. The purple figure had a fowl beak that haunted a ghost. 'What the heck? There's an evil being inside that man. I gotta warn the others.' Ash ran up to and sided by BlackWarGreymon. "You were right, Yukio isn't human. Someone or something's controlling him." The Digidestined and Digimon were shocked.

"I figured as much. But how were you-"

"Needed some intense advice." Gotcha...

"Intense advice, you say? How about...THIS?" Yukio fired a black beam at Ash. Was Ash ready for it? BlackWarGreymon didn't think so? He jumped in front, getting the full blast of the contact.

"BlackWarGreymon!" Ash, WarGreymon and Paildramon shouted. WarGreymon and Ash got to BlackWarGreymon, heavily damaged from the impact left on its chest.

"You were fools to think that I was a weak and lonely person. My desire wasn't power but to return to my home. To return to the DigiWorld!" Return? Yukio was from the DigiWorld? Yukio began to walk off. BlackWarGreymon was very weakened from the damage it endured.

"I don't have much time left," he groaned. "The control spires are shattering inside. I have to stop that evil Digimon from returning to the DigiWorld." A virus with a good heart.

"That's enough, BlackWarGreymon," Kari pleaded. "You need to preserve your strength!" BlackWarGreymon knew his fate was worse than this.

"No, that's what I'm offering to all of you." It gave one final look to Ash. "Ash, we're all aware that you're not a Digidestined, but you do belong in the DigiWorld much more than...him! " The knees were buckling. This was it. "I need to seal the Hightonview Terrace Gateway." WarGreymon did not want him to go.

"Don't do it!" he cried out.

"I must!" With that, he leaped to the sky, a plume of purple smoke billowing from the wound. Suddenly, he disintegrated. Particles of his body scattered all over Odaiba. That's it. BlackWarGreymon was no more.

"He always wanted to do something fulfilling in his life," Ken groaned, feeling as if it was a friend that he hadn't seen in years only to be reunited before dying.

"He protected Ash," Kari mumbled, saddened at the loss of BlackWarGreymon as well. Ash was so close when BlackWarGreymon took the fatal "bullet" for him. He was sad...and angered. He punched the ground.

"Why?" he whimpered. "WHY!" His scream could be heard from the park out to Tokyo. It was upsetting. BlackWarGreymon forfeited his life to atone for whatever he did to the Digidestined. With Yukio wanting a "return trip," it may be impossible with BlackWarGreymon's seal. What about the rest? What about Sinnoh? What about the other children?

* * *

TO BE CONTINUED...


	9. Remorse & Relocation

_Chapter 8: Remorse & Relocation

* * *

_

BlackWarGreymon. Why? Why did he sacrifice himself? It was nighttime where everyone tried to sleep, a heavy heart settled when Yukio destroyed the "Digimon" created out of control spires. It was a long and hard night for the heroes. Even at her home, Yolei had an issue with sleep. Ash couldn't sleep. He kept replaying and replaying the moment where BlackWarGreymon threw himself in front of Ash and protected him from the shot. Why did he throw his life away? Yolei felt the uneasiness in the room and opened her eyes. Her vision was fuzzy without the glasses, yet saw Ash up and looking out of the window. "It's after midnight," she sleeplessly groaned. "Get some sleep." Ash didn't react. He was so minded of the moment he met the spirits of Sir Aaron and Lucario. He was so minded of what he did to protect an innocent girl. He was so minded...on the last moments of BlackWarGreymon's life.

"Why did he?" he muttered. "Why did he protect me? Why did he let himself die instead of letting us help him?" Yolei understood the trouble Ash was going through. She got to her feet and got to the window sill with him.

"I've told you five times already, he wasn't a real Digimon to begin with." Five times? Ash may not be the sharpest tool in the shed but his hearing may be in question. "BlackWarGreymon wanted to find a meaning in his short and artificial life. He fought us and showed how powerful he became. Then he met Azulongmon and things changed from him wanting to fight powerful Digimon to finding a more proper purpose." All that and Ash still had a hard time wondering why BlackWarGreymon would fight the Digidestined but allowed himself to side with him? It didn't make sense.

"But why didn't he fight me? I could've been one of his enemies and got annihilated but he didn't show any signs of aggression." That could be the part that troubled him the most. BlackWarGreymon fought the Digidestined but not Ash who was as human as they were. This further troubled the Pallet Town trainer.

"I think that's what's running constantly through your mind. You know, he did have a 'heart.' He probably wanted someone he could trust to help us through this endeavor." Ash looked back outside, BlackWarGreymon's remains scattering the streets like a soft hailstorm. "You believe that his death will live on inside you. He did fight for us in the end, don't get me wrong."

"No, no, I understand that part." Finally, he sighed a hard breath. "I'm sorry. Just having everyone see BlackWarGreymon's death, including Max and Noriko...It's a way of going that had me thinking back to Latios back in Alto Mare. Two members of Team Rocket stealing Latios' strength to power up the AMD system along with the Soul Dew and nearly destroying the city. He used the last remaining strength to stop the wave that would've been the end of us. It left his sister, Lorenzo, Bianca and us grieving for him. I...didn't want to relive it but..." It did happen to him. Yolei saw the fear in Ash's tone. She wrapped her arms around Ash in a hug, one far more gentler than the one she applied at the beginning. Tomorrow was going to be a long day.

"Listen, Ash. All I want you to do is concentrate on the battle tomorrow. Then, you can go to Sinnoh when we're done." Tears trickled onto Ash's shoulder. Ash was in grief but Yolei was in desired fear. She did not want Ash to forfeit his life in the sake of BlackWarGreymon's namesake. It would be a hard night for anyone to sleep on but they had to try. The next morning, the challenge was on. The second generation Digidestined, Izzy, Matt and Ash watched on, wondering when the children would show up at a bridge crossing over a street. The location: Highton View Terrace. "This is the spot." The rendezvous point for Yukio to make his move.

"Yeah, but no one's even here," Davis pointed out. As true as it was, they continued to view. Suddenly, a little boy popped up. To Kari, the prediction was correct.

"There's one of them, now," she noticed. It wouldn't take long for a taller girl to show herself. Then another boy and a girl.

"They're taking their time showing themselves one by one," Patamon mulled, wishing that they all would appear. The ever-growing amount idled around the bridge railing.

"You guys believe they're waiting for Oikawa?" Izzy guessed. Cody believed so.

"It would make sense," he gritted. "This would be our chance to take vengeance on what he did to BlackWarGreymon." That would be bad to Ash. He was about to let them know.

"Timeout, Cody," he spoke. "We don't even know if that _is_ Oikawa. Remember that BlackWarGreymon and I saw some shadow within Yukio."

"And besides, BlackWarGreymon sacrificed himself to seal Odaiba from access to the DigiWorld," Matt added. "Those kids may not know, but there's a chance that Yukio doesn't either." It was sounding like a safe bet. Still, it made Ash worry...and not just because of the kids that were still forming on the bridge.

"Say, wasn't Max with Tai and Sora after Noriko?" Yolei asked. Now things got interesting. Ash nodded without a hesitant flinch. Izzy turned to Matt, not really liking the concept of Tai and Sora being together.

"If you ask me, I don't like the plan of those two being paired to watch one of Yukio's favorites," he expressed his displeasure.

"Relax, Izzy," Matt reassured with a smile. "Tai's my best bud. There's nothing to worry about." If he said so...

"And besides, Max is right there to make sure everything is going straight," Ash added. "He's managed to do that with Brock." So Max was with the two older teens to make sure they were on line with the task. As they were talking, Ken looked up a skyscraper, sensing a feeling to look in that direction. Nothing.

"Is something wrong, Ken?" Wormmon wondered in concern. Maybe it was a false alarm.

"Nothing," he tried to ease. "I thought I saw something." Hoping so, Wormmon hid back in the bush with Pikachu and the Digimon. It was a waiting game...that wasn't going to last long. Pikachu saw the oncoming force.

"He's here!" he called out. You should realize that he's wearing the collar again. All turned to see Yukio and his posse approach the kids. Ash saw something and wanted to bring that something out. It was time to confront the "man" and his group.

"It's time!" Davis growled. "Let's get Oikawa and save the kids!" Yes, while they're kids themselves. The group dashed out but were cut off halfway by the Digimon Ash had to fight solo a couple chapters back: Arukenimon and Mummymon in their digital forms.

"Where do you think you're going?" Arukenimon sneered. She was ready for action.

"You should be answering that question!" Ken roared. "Don't you dare touch a hair on those children!" Yukio smiled an evil grin.

"I'm afraid that can't be done," he "sincerely" regretted. "The dark flowers growing in these children are spreading at a rapid pace. They need to be tended to for them to be saved. Otherwise the seeds inside will destroy them by mutating them into dark trees." Ken grew horrified. Any reason?

"So the dark flower in Noriko's locks would've killed her and you'd have no remorse?" Ash angrily gritted. Yukio was about to fill Ash in on a little secret that he wasn't aware of.

"Let me advise you on something involving one of the Digidestined. He carried the first dark seed which caused him to think he was in control of everything. That seed lived in a contolled manner so it wasn't capable of destroying you. The seeds inside these children are unbalanced copies and need tender care." Hearing this information, Ash turned to Ken. All those incidents that followed Ken...

"So what you're saying is that you intended to use my dark spore to wreak havoc on the minds of the youth without a care in the world?" Ken groaned in spite. Yukio laughed. That's showing that he didn't care.

"Surely you jest. These kids wanted what you had: fitness, intelligence, power. Don't blame me if I'm fulfilling their wish. But enough talk." He brought out his laptop and began to work on it. "The digital world awaits!" He _was_ unaware of BlackWarGreymon's seal.

"What makes you think it's easy for you to access the DigiWorld?" Davis yelled. Suddenly, TK had an idea.

"Let him try," he murmured. What was he thinking? "That way, we can rescue the kids." Davis gave it a moment to think about it before he nodded, going with the plan. However, it was too late. A blue sphere formed around Yukio and the kids. This was not good. Finally, a light shone open a doorway. Yukio cackled in delight.

'Finally, I'm returning home,' he thought loudly. Ash and Davis weren't about to let Yukio get away with the children. Ash and the Digidestined began to pursue the madman by plowing passed the stunned mummy commando and demon spider. Those two recovered and followed everyone else into the light. Nothing good could come out of this. The other side had a lake with a few trees. The light door opened to allow everyone to escape. The children, happy as possible, frolicked onto the scene. "Gather around, children! We have arrived in the digital world!" It seemed that Yukio was able to bypass BlackWarGreymon's seal just as Ash and the Digidestined arrived. Suddenly, a boy screeched. Yukio turned to the boy and ran over. "What's wrong?" The boy sensed something...but not the feeling of being in the right place.

"This-" he stuttered. "This isn't the DigiWorld!" Yukio looked around. That's when he felt the same feeling. He realized that he wasn't in the same place he wished for.

"W-What's going on? If this isn't the digital world, where the heck are we?" None of the kids knew. None of the Digidestined knew. Ash studied the spot.

"Ash, you seemed to be familiar with here," Kari noticed. "If Oikawa's right and we're not back in the DigiWorld..." Ash got the whiff and realized where they were placed.

"It seems that BlackWarGreymon had taken us back on my home world," he scoffed. That meant... That meant that they were in the Pokémon World. Not the ideal place Yukio was looking forward to. He shot a glace at Ash who smirked greatly at the scenario. "Well, Oikawa, I'd like to welcome you to Mt. Quena well in the Johto Region." Yukio groaned in displeasure, feeling that he was wronged by what happened.

"You mean to tell us that instead of being in the world of monsters we're knowing about, we're actually in a world of your birth?" he theorized. Ash chuckled a little as he continued his stare down.

"It seems when you destroyed BlackWarGreymon, you failed to see the repercussion of your action. He sealed the gate over Odaiba and when you thought you could still reach the DigiWorld, you bounced off a firewall and were redirected to a location hosting some powerful creatures who would do anything to maintain natural balance." Ouch! Ash was talking about the issue as if he directed a movie. Poor Yukio couldn't fathom the location he was sent to

"This isn't fair! This isn't fair in the least!" While he was freaking out, a battalion of Pokémon came out, varying different species and colors from cats to bees to mice. Hey, another Pikachu! The children saw the Pokémon but were bewildered and confused about why this became their fate. That's when one larger creature revealed itself. It was a white deformed creature which was human adult height with a lilac tail which expanded to it's abdomen. It had three fingers in each hand.

"_**Who dares disturb the home of the clone Pokémon?"**_ it announced. Telepathy? The sight of the new creature brought more fear into the seeded kids. Arukenimon and Mummymon saw their boss, then the kids and the creatures.

"Okay, Mummymon," Arukenimon wondered. "Do you have any idea what's going on?" Mummymon wasn't sure on how to respond. Then again, his thought process was slower than a Slowpoke.

"Don't look to me, I'm still wondering where the heck we are," he bobbled on mind. Ash ran on over to the new creature to inform it on the situation.

"We could use your help, Mewtwo," Ash noted. "That guy has something inside of him that needs to be removed as well as dark spores in those kids that are huddled in fear." A rather tall order for Mewtwo to do, huh? "We've got that mummy and spider." Yukio got back to his feet, still upset about being sent somewhere other than his proposed destination. He turned to Ash and Mewtwo with anger.

"This is all your fault," he groaned. His fault? Dude, you're blaming the wrong person...or species. "This...is all your fault! I wanted the digital world, not some back wood explanation of why my wishes were denied!" As if the only threat were Yukio and the Digimon, a rapid headache smacked the elder to the floor.

"_You have failed the wishes of my returning desire!"_ a voice echoed out. Ash heard it, wondering what it was. It sounded like Yukio but was much darker. Mewtwo and the Digidestined heard the voice too, but none more clearer than TK and Kari.

"Don't tell me..." TK stuttered. "He's still alive after all this time?" Kari shivered in distraught fear of the voice as well. Whoever it was, sounded completely villainous. That's when Yukio began to emit a purple light which formed a human shape. The veil removed itself and...another Yukio? This Yukio wasn't too upset that he was somewhere different...but was rather appalled.

"Yukio Oikawa, you have become a disappointment throughout this ordeal," the new Yukio groaned. The first Yukio was groveling, trying to plead that he had no idea what just happened and that it was out of his hands.

"Please forgive me!" he whined. "I had no idea this would be the problem!" The second Yukio wasn't in that mood to let bygones go. "I'm sorry, Hiroki. I wanted to take your dreams to the digital world. I failed." The second Yukio gazed around, viewing the kids before spotting Ash and Mewtwo.

"I know you've been helping the Digidestined, boy. Tell me how we wound up in your world and not back home." He was questioning Ash? What for?

"_**I, too, require an explanation on why you and these children are on Mt. Quena?"**_ Mewtwo asked. Ash was left no choice, feeling that he had to say something.

"It was actually BlackWarGreymon that sent us here," he surrendered. "He used the last of his strength to seal the digital ports in Japan and blocked access to the DigiWorld." The second Yukio seemed rather humored. Did he think it was a joke?

"So that control spire-made Digimon used his own body as a firewall and denied any access whatsoever," he scoffed. "I didn't think he would be of any use other than eliminating the Digidestined. Now, here we are in a world where monsters co-exist with humans, much like the digital world. A little time and this world is mine to rule." That's when he gazed down at the Yukio he emerged from. "At least failures will not get in my way." Suddenly, A purple blade was formed out of the "gas" still emitting from himself. The blade swung down. Kari, Yolei and Cody, as well as the Digimon, couldn't bear to watch. SLASH! It struck the first Yukio. It didn't look like much until blood began to stain his coat. Yukio was wounded. As added measure, the gas smacked Yukio to the side like he was hit by a sledgehammer. Yukio was laid out near the lake. The boys were horrified with the display.

"What was that for?" Davis screamed in furious anger. Yukio seemed very calm for someone who had swiped the other off.

"He may not have taken me to the digital world but he did serve his purpose." Arukenimon and Mummymon dashed over to the downed Yukio, their boss seemingly clinging on to whatever life was left.

"Boss!" Arukenimon pleaded for Yukio to wake up. "Boss!" It wasn't working. Was Yukio dead? It made Arukenimon hissing mad. "You'll pay!" In pure frustration, Arukenimon launched her Spider Web at the conscious Yukio. The purple mist blocked the strike. Before Arukenimon could fire again, the mist acted like a javelin and pierced right through her chest. Arukenimon was stopped.

"You and Mummymon are only puppets to my glorious return. However, knowing that we're somewhere else conducts the failure." Harsh but meaning the truth. Then...BOOM! Arukenimon exploded. Nothing remained. Was it a Digimon's override program? Did the standing Yukio had the mist blow up inside her? Whatever the cause, Mummymon was seething anger.

"Darling!" he cried. "I don't know who or what you really are but deleting my darling like that will earn you demise beyond your wildest nightmares!" He ragingly fired his sidearm, firing white bolts of lightning. The mist guarded Yukio flawlessly as he stood by and watch. Mummymon figured that he wasn't taking damage and proceeded to fire his Snake Bandage. Surprisingly, the wraps snagged Yukio around the ribs, arms and neck. However, it never deterred Yukio as the bandage around his neck tightened. Mummymon yanked harder and harder. Nothing.

"Poor Mummymon," Yukio mocked without sounding different at all. "Are you showing me anger or sadness? You want to hurt me and yet these wraps are just giving me a massage." Mummymon couldn't fathom the fact that nothing was working on him. He wouldn't be able to live too long. The mist fumed out and using the wraps as a guideline. The mist ruptured into flames and engulfed Mummymon. He let out a blood-curdling scream for mercy. "This is the moment the pharaoh of Digimon is laid to a permanent rest." Everything on Mummymon burned. Even his rifle was scorched. When the fire subsided, all that remained from Mummymon was a few bandage wraps that still burn. Arukenimon was no more. Mummymon was no more. That one man was still down.

"_**Those were creatures who followed your orders," **_Mewtwo growled. **_"Yet you kill them for something beyond their control?" _**Yukio laughed, feeling relieved than mournful. Cold.

"I don't allow mistakes to occur. You see, I used that poor, soul-broken man as a tool to try and see a way to return home after my failed attempt to rule the humans four years ago." That alarmed Kari and TK. "Coming to this place was a setback that I may have overlooked. However, this may be a step up to ruling not one but three worlds." That Yukio wasn't human. TK finally put the pieces together.

"That's what you think, Myotismon!" he loudly scowled. Who was it now?

"Congratulations, Takeru Ishida. You figured me out. But my prize isn't really what a human wants...at least right away." As the Digidestined got ready to battle, the mist engulfed the man. It was a Digimon. But who was Myotismon? Mewtwo and Ash knew that this was a battle...one they may not survive.

* * *

TO BE CONTINUED...


	10. Death & Choice

_Chapter 9: Death & Choice

* * *

_

This was a dangerous scene on Mt. Quena. The being that looked like Yukio took out the real deal as well as his Digimon. With a score of scared kids from Odaiba, a legion of Pokémon and the Digidestined ready for battle, what was the phony Yukio, or Myotismon, changing into? "Do you think he'll emerge as Myotismon or VenoMyotismon?" TK weighed. TK watched, feeling the power of the dark energy emitting from the false man. Suddenly, the veil of darkness unraveled. Out came a white fiend creature that appeared to have an exoskeleton as armor. The tail had to have come from an scientific fictional flick. There was a dark mark on it's chest in the shape of a bat. The shoulder pads had fangs and eyes. Some people have argued that two heads weren't better than one. How about three heads? The wings were outrageously mutated like it appeared as a bat mixed with a large parasite. The head was somewhat human, until you saw how huge his jaw was, since the teeth were serrated like a shark's. This was not what TK or Kari had in mind from their displeased but surprised faces.

"If that's Myotismon, he certainly become far more serious," Kari noted.

"That's for sure," Cody pondered. "He's Mega level...but I thought VenoMyotismon was Mega level too. No way there's a level higher." So, what did it mean for the new Myotismon, if that was his name?

"That's because I've grown stronger feeding off the miniscule emotions of humans worldwide as I was recovering from the defeat those four years ago," he scorned the Digidestined. "Of course, in order to understand, I used the poor man's vessel to regain and re-plan. So heartbroken about the loss of Hiroki Hido. If I'm not mistaken, that was your father who was killed in the line of duty by a panicked teenager who stole the family car and his father's revolver, am I right, Cody?" Cody cringed in relevance to his past. Armadillomon raced over to comfort his partner.

"Cody, don't let his words get into your head," he tried to reason.

"I know, Armadillomon," Cody replied. "But- But he has no right to bring back my past like that, whoever he is!" The fiend seemed satisfied about the taunting result.

"Perhaps I should tell you who I am," he sneered. "I am MaloMyotismon, the meanest Virus Digimon in the world. I'd rather break down my enemies before I destroy them. Makes the experience a little more enjoyable." Ash and Mewtwo grew angrier and angrier the more he teased the issue. The kids were too scared to stand up and move.

"Was that your plan this whole time?" Ash growled. "Play with these kids' minds and wear them down to kill them before they could live?" Ash was focused on the kids that he forgot the plan of the fiend's return.

"Did you forget? I wanted the power of the dark spores and their emotions to power me in returning to the DigiWorld. All these kids have become were small casualties." MaloMyotismon didn't care about the children, making Ash more furious. Davis was boiling over.

"That's it!" he yelled. "It's about time that we shut you up for good!" The Digidestined digivolved their Digimon expect for Kari and Gatomon and Ken and Davis got Imperialdramon to show itself. That wasn't all. There were new Digimon from before more action. Patamon had changed into an angel with a silver helmet and staff. The red horned bird also appeared. Then came something that was seen...except with different Digimon.

"Ankylomon!" Armadillomon which digivolved to Ankylomon, roared.

"Angemon!" shouted the angel. That's when they began to mix.

"DNA Digivolve to...Shakkoumon!" they shouted as they united and became a large silver metallic doll that looked like a figure seen in Mexico's hieroglyphics. It wasn't the only one.

"Aquilamon!" the bird named itself.

"Gatomon!" the cat meowed, ready to be blended. Here was the new mix.

"DNA Digivolve to...Silphymon!" they called out. The mix became...a human? Aquilamon's talons were the legs, Gatomon's claws were the arms which had small wings but could anyone explain the helmet or the breastplate in the front? Gatomon's ears stuck out of the black hair and the face was skin like a human was. Weird. With Ash and Mewtwo on standby, it seemed that MaloMyotismon's work was cutout. Yet, he remained deterred.

"So, you've managed to master a new digivolution," he sneered. "It won't really matter too much. By the time the sun rises, everyone on this mountain will cease to exist." The Digidestined became enraged as MaloMyotismon cackled. No one was aware of a sneak attack.

"Dragon Rage!" screamed an older female. MaloMyotismon heard and turned to the sound. Three orange dragons showed up and fired yellow orbs of fire. Two of the dragons had horns on the head and flames on their tails. One of those two also had pink ribbons. The other one had a horn on the crown and was a bit larger than the other two. The three orbs united and blasted MaloMyotismon, sending him to the far wall. The force of the shot nearly plowed him through the rocky wall. The dragons landed and the scared kids finally looked to them. Jumping down were two women with ponytails. Can- Can we call those ponytails? Let's change them to dragon tails for the while. One was a sky blue-haired wearing a dark blue robe. The other was a green-haired in some rad red suit. Ash was flabbergasted to see who it was.

"Liza?" he gulped, calling the girl in red. "And Clair? What are you two doing here?" Clair, the blue-haired, turned to Ash.

"Liza and I were on our way to the Holy Land when we heard cries of children," she explained. "We never assumed that there was anyone than Pokémon on here since this is a prohibited area." Ash and the Digidestined were trespassing? That's when she and Liza viewed the Digimon which began to get his legs back under him.

"By the way, who's he?" Liza wondered. Ash could go into detail but TK beat him to the punch.

"Ash, we'll deal with MaloMyotismon!" he shouted. "You get the kids to safety!" Ash wanted to help. He knew the kids were more important. He, Pikachu, Clair and Liza dashed over to the seeded kids after agreeing with the blond. No, none of the kids were pregnant, it's the dark spores.

"Dragonite!" Clair called the larger dragon. "You, Charla and Charizard do what you can to protect those kids!" She pointed to the Digidestined, having the three dragons side up with the Digimon. Hearing the plan, MaloMyotismon chose to attack.

"You won't get the chance!" he shouted as the shoulder guards began to open up like big mouths. Seriously, those were huge peep holes that opened. Out came balls of black, heading right at the scared youths. Ash jumped in front of the projectiles.

"Ash!" Yolei screamed out. "Don't!" No choice. It was now or never. That's when Ash began to glow blue, his aura activated. Now was the moment.

"I don't need those!" he roared as he swatted the orbs away...right back at MaloMyotismon.

"What?" he gasped. BA-BOOM! The balls blasted MaloMyotismon off his feet once more. Liza and Clair were shocked at what Ash was able to do. Davis, Ken and Cody were surprised about that deflection as well.

"Did you see that?" Davis wondered.

"I saw it, but what did he do?" Cody questioned. Kari, Yolei or TK could answer but this was an opportunity to hammer MaloMyotismon.

"Never mind!" Yolei shouted. "This is our chance!" The DNA Digimon got ready to finish MaloMyotismon off, including Dragonite, Charla (the one with the ribbons) and Charizard. Mewtwo hovered to the kids, willing to advise Ash about something.

"_**Ash, these kids were tainted with a Dark Spore, right?"**_ he wondered. Ash turned and prepared to answer.

"That's right," he replied. "But their spores are unbalanced copies of the original that was once carried by one of the Digidestined." That made Clair and Liza gulp.

"What do you mean unbalanced?" Liza asked. Ash would answer but Clair placed a hand on her shoulder.

"It means if we don't do something, these kids may not live," she summarized. That had Mewtwo coming with an idea as the Digimon engaged in combat with MaloMyotismon.

"_**It's a long shot but the underground lake cleansed me of my sins and wounds,"**_ he thought up. **_"We can gather the kids and have them swim in that same lake, the dark spores should be washed out inside!"_** A lake which purifies someone who would bathe in it? It did sound like a long shot. Meanwhile, Silphymon raced in, it's body growing red and its wings...er, arms crossed.

"Static Force!" it yelled. It fired a red shot of energy, striking MaloMyotismon. He shrugged off the strike and fired more of the black balls. It struck Silphymon in which it went down quick, making Kari and Yolei worry. Shakkoumon stood up and opened a compartment in the midsection.

"_**Kachina Bombs!"**_ it roared. Volleys of discs shot out and came at MaloMyotismon. All he did was scoff.

"Really, is that your best?" he sneered. That's when he spewed a bloody red mist which made contact. The discs melted away like a burning piece of toilet paper in lava. Ash, Clair, Liza and Mewtwo tried to get the kids' attentions.

"Listen, all of you!" Clair yelled out. "By being here, you put your lives in jeopardy! Do you want to cower around the battlefield, waiting for an attack to destroy you?" The kids, already upset, bewildered and confused, didn't hear the words of the blue-haired woman.

"We were-" one girl cried. "We were promised to go to the DigiWorld!" That again?

"We-" one boy hiccuped. "We didn't want to come here!" The cries of innocent children... Clair wanted to try and straighten them up when Ash had an idea. That promise... He had a plan to get the children to move.

"You can still go to the DigiWorld," he spoke up. That made the kids turn. It would seem that they were susceptible to any promise. "You can!" That made Liza and Clair suspicious of his plan.

"Really, Ash?" Liza criticized. "How can you make a promise of something that doesn't exist like this DigiWorld?" All Ash did was shoot a grin. He knew something she didn't...or Clair or Mewtwo or anyone else in the five meter vicinity.

"Well, Liza, you haven't been in Pallet Town, have you?" That still didn't clear the fog in Liza's head. It did clue Clair on what he meant.

"Are you saying that your hometown has a link to this DigiWorld?" she guessed. She's getting hotter. That's thinking wise, not body you pervs.

"Yeah, did you hear about the abandonment of Pallet Town a while back? I happened to discover it when I came back from a delivery to Prof. Ivy." Ash gazed at the kids and realized that further talking would not get them anywhere fast. "Mewtwo, lead the way." Mewtwo nodded as he levitated away. "Let's go!" Ash, Liza, Clair and the kids dashed in pursuit of Mewtwo. The area cleared of kids, the Digidestined were ready to really open up.

"Good work, Ash," Yolei hushed a compliment. "No wonder why you're a great hero." MaloMyotismon wasn't too proud of losing the kids.

"That was your game plan the entire time?" he scoffed. "Not only was BlackWarGreymon's sacrifice a bit of a turn but to use the new area to evacuate the kids? Most clever. Too bad that will be your last waking moment." That's when a white mist began in envelop the crowd. The mist clouded the Digidestined and Digimon with no problem. Meanwhile, Ash and the rest reached a large location with a giant lake. The grass surrounding the lake was blanketed with flowers. Was this the place Mewtwo wanted to take them?

"Here we are," Ash confirmed. "Everyone, into the pool!" Finally, they could wash away the grief that they've endured. But no one budged. Everyone stood still. "Now what?" This was becoming annoying. They didn't want to swim?

"N-None of us brought anything to swim in," one girl opened up. Of all the excuses...

"_**Your lives are more important than a simple wardrobe,"**_ Mewtwo argued. **_"We'll have your clothes cleaned and dried up when it's all over."_** They were believing promises left and right. Giving in, the kids jumped into the lake, even sampling the water. Suddenly, one girl began to cough. A few seconds passed when a black seed was vomited. Was that the dark spore? When it touched the water, the seed vaporized. Watching that, Ash, Liza and Clair were happily shocked. It worked.

"Everyone, drink the water!" she cheered. The kids gulped down the water. The coughing proceeded before the spores were puked out. One by one, the spores became dust. Mewtwo snagged one with his psychic power and "pulled" it to him for him to examine.

"So, that's what was inserted into the kids," Liza figured. It appeared to be.

"_**These seeds contain an energy that no one, not even evil can fully obtain,"**_ Mewtwo discovered. **_"The envelopment of madness and depression in each spore have no limit and can destroy anyone, even in the right hands."_** That anger made Mewtwo crush the last seed. Just in time too. MaloMyotismon found the spot.

"You've destroyed my dark spores, have you?" he growled. "Why do some of the simplest things provide the toughest of complications? Then again, why does it have to be Pokémon trainers and these feeble creatures become the greater enemies to Digimon?" Pokémon and Digimon enemies? Someone clue him in.

"Anyone who harms children, whether physically or mentally, is not anyone I'd consider a friend," Ash growled.

"That's too bad. You would've been a great experiment to equalizing the effects of the copied spore treatment." Did MaloMyotismon think that the Dark Spores were a spa treatment? "By the way, I've let the Digidestined have a little time off. Surrounded in my mist of Mental Illusion, those brats won't be bothersome while I take back the kids from you." That would mean that the monsters are also in the mist. Now all that stood between the children and MaloMyotismon was Ash, Pikachu, Mewtwo, Liza and Clair. "Now, move!"

"Okay," Ash quickly agreed before moving swiftly...at him! MaloMyotismon grinned at the moment where he would easily beat the kid.

"Ash!" Liza and Clair shrieked in fear. MaloMyotismon readied his arm to swat Ash.

"Stupid boy," he smiled. "You've made your date with destiny!" He swung. Ash's aura activated. Ash ducked and spun. A miss! "What?" Ash fired a punch from the spin. It made contact with the jaw and fired MaloMyotismon through the wall...and out the side of the mountain. The wings opened up and he began to fly. Ash was the only one out there who braced for more. "You think by using that inner strength that you'll keep me away from those kids?" That's when Ash flashed a smile.

"I hate to steal this from Misty but I don't think, I know!" he cheered. Did he know something MaloMyotismon was not aware of?

"Terra Force!" sounded...WarGreymon? A massive orb of red energy rained down at MaloMyotismon. KABOOM! The blast seemed to have knocked the enemy from the sky. He began to recover as more Digimon showed up. One was a metallic wolf with blades over the body. Another was a giant red beetle with a turquoise jewel on the back. There was a giant red griffin that stood like a human if not for being in the air. Let's not forget WarGreymon and Lillymon. Ash gawked at how right he became. That's when he turned and spotted the first generation Digidestined.

"Ash!" shouted Mimi.

"Are you okay?" Matt asked.

"Yeah, we've eradicated the dark spores from the kids," Ash replied. Tai snickered and flung a thumbs up.

"I knew you'd come through," he grinned. "All we need is Noriko to rid what ever is left of the spore in her."

"Easy. Have her take a drink of the spring water and she should extract the spore in short time." Joe got the detail and ran over to help Noriko. She made the trip as well?

"I don't go down that easily," MaloMyotismon roared as he soared higher and at the troupe. "Crimson Mist!" Out from the shoulders came more red mist.

"Wing Blade!" the griffin roared which spewed a raging blaze in the shape of a bird. It swooped into the mist, hoping to burn it. No dice. The attack fizzled in the cloud. MaloMyotismon followed it with more black orbs. Lillymon flew onto the plate.

"Flower Cannon!" she shouted. A blast of green energy was launched from the flower and hit one of the black orbs, destroying it. There was another orb which hit her and knocked her out of the air. MaloMyotismon then raced at WarGreymon who locked arms.

"You're still as slow as ever, WarGreymon!'" he mocked.

"Don't doubt me, you fiend!" WarGreymon countered with an uppercut to the jaw. MaloMyotismon flapped clear of the attack. As the group continued, Ash and the First-Gen Digidestined, along with the kids returned above ground...where there was an even larger group of people and Digimon that nearly covered the peak of Mt. Quena.

"It's the Global Digidestined!" Matt shrieked. Global Digidestined? From all over Earth? The flying Digimon rose back up to the top of the mountain where MaloMyotismon got a look at the endeavor in front of him.

"What's this?" The Global Digidestined rose their devices which shone brightly, including Japan's team who broke out.

"USA!" shouted Maria.

"Viva la France!" A blond girl roared.

"For Mother Russia!" three kids unified their call. The lights fired and struck MaloMyotismon, paralyzing him. The Digimon launched an array of attacks and struck MaloMyotismon. The combination of blows did the job and destroyed the Mega Digimon...or so it seemed. MaloMyotismon was replaced by a cloud of black.

"_**You cannot destroy evil!"**_ he gloated. **_"I will manifest myself into all of you and no one can escape!"_** The cloud began to descend onto the kids. Mewtwo came forward and fired a blue beam, striking the cloud. The cloud began to rip. _**"NO! I...CANNOT...LOSE!"**_ One final scream and suddenly, the cloud became nothing. The kids were cheering in the overwhelming victory. Mewtwo, Liza and Clair watched on as the union of the Digidestined was in full bloom. With MaloMyotismon gone for good, there was one task left to do: bring the kids home to Japan.

* * *

TO BE CONCLUDED...


	11. Go & Go

_Chapter 10/Final: Go & Go

* * *

_

The celebration was on. MaloMyotismon was destroyed. Ash, Liza, Clair and the Global Digidestined were finally enjoying the aftermath. The Global Digidestined, stretching from New York to Moscow to Sydney, finally confronted each other and in better respect than some of their parents' friends, have acknowledged peace in the Pokémon World on Mt. Quena. Some of the kids finally had a chance to introduce themselves to Ash. One blond girl gave Ash a kiss on each cheek. Although Ash began to blush, the blond didn't do it out of affection. "Do not be so bashful," the girl teased with a French accent. "That is how the French greet each other." Liza and Clair didn't show jealousy and after that explanation, they chuckled a bit. It had taken a moment for Ash to get her action.

"You mean like this?" he guessed as he did a pair on her cheeks.

"_Oui. Très bien."_ For those who never had a French class (yet), her reply was "yes. Very good." That's when Maria came forward, wanting to feel Ash's lips on her flesh.

"Hey, don't I get a kiss, too?" she whined. "I did help you with Cherrymon back at the Rockefeller Center." She did. Ash didn't forget that.

"Okay!" he surrendered before giving her a good pair on her cheeks. Watching this and with Pikachu on his shoulder, Davis wanted to give a tease at Ash.

"Take it easy, ladies," he huffed while holding back a snicker or two. "You might turn Ash into a kiss-aholic." Good one, even Pikachu was laughing at that tease. Maria was not really satisfied with the twin pecks.

"Aw, I was hoping for more of, oh...I don't know..." That's when she _really _gave Ash one to remember and it wasn't small beaks to the cheek. How about a big, wet one on the lips? Ash just got some tasty American.

"_Non, non, non, non, non!"_ the French blond scolded. "That is not the proper greeting!"

"Hey, he didn't help you with Digimon, did he? So, why do you get the honors of kissing him?" Ouch! The blond girl relented on the approach, sighing in defeat. Suddenly, the group looked where Pokémon gathered around the once-seeded kids. The kids were mystified about why these creatures would frolic over to them. "Those Pokémon want to know these kids? Why?"

"_Je ne sais pas!"_ It took a moment for Ash to have an idea.

"It makes a rather unusual sense," he spoke. That made Maria and the other girl befuddled.

"_Parlez, s'il vous plait!"_

"Yeah, what she said." Let's hear him out.

"Well, those are actually clones of Pokémon, created at some mysterious island by using strong Pokémon," he began. "What makes sense that these clones had gone after these kids is the fact that they had clones in themselves. The kids had copies of dark spores in them created by how the fake Yukio manipulate the stories. These Pokémon sense the problems made by the spores and came to console the kids." A clone to a clone? Interesting.

"_**I never would believe that the clones of Pokémon would be interested in these out world kids," **_Mewtwo awed. **_"I guess the drama and fear implanted on these kids brought out the truths of their realities."_** Come again, Mewtwo? There was a piece of information that Ash held on till now.

"Right, you're a clone of Mew." A clone? That made sense. Suddenly...

"He needs help!" one boy yelled out. The group darted to Yukio. He's still alive? The group dashed over to where Yukio lied. He was gravely wounded. Cody was there, trying to get Yukio to stay awake.

"I...may be breathing my last breaths soon," he groaned in pain. Lou and TK were gathering the medical equipment to help Yukio.

"You need to hold on," Cody gritted. It was a massive wound to suffer from MaloMyotismon. "Please, for my father's sake." It was a tall order that Yukio knew would not help him.

"Cody...I remember...you have Hiroki's eyes. When you go back home...give your mother a big hug in his and my name...would you?" Cody couldn't believe the words coming out of Yukio's mouth. Yukio seemed to have accepted his fate.

"No! Don't you still want to see the DigiWorld? Don't you want to have a Digimon to call your own without gimmicks?" For Yukio, it was no longer an option.

"You've done the work, not only for yourself, but for your father and myself. You have Armadillomon. You have friends. I...I have atoned my guilt." That's when he saw Ash. He was no longer hostile due to the wound. "BlackWarGreymon was right about you. You have a reason in being in all three worlds. To unite Pokémon trainers and Digidestined shall become your offer. I know that you can be the overseer to this task." This was a tall offer for Ash. Unions of Pokémon and Digimon. All new adventures that may option with a feat like this. Yukio began to draw his last breaths. "My time has finally come." He was beyond the point of recovery. He closed his eyes.

"No! Don't go!" His body became cold. No more breathing. No pulse. No heartbeats. Lou and TK finally brought the items but they were too late. Kari dove onto Ash as Cody dropped his head onto the still body, sobbing at the loss of a man who saw the light at his dying moments. The Pokémon wailed cries of sadness at Yukio's death. None of the kids couldn't understand why a man like him had to die in such a way. Seeing the passing and what brought Yukio toward the madness, Clair decided on what should be done about the body.

"It would be best to cremate him," she chose. Ash thought about it. This would be the only way to send his ashes which had been tainted with the evils of sadness and tyranny.

"Alright," he replied. Davis, Lou and Liza offered their aid to setup a wooden bed to help with the scorching of the body. Before long, a bed made from trees which were knocked down during the battle was created. Mewtwo used his psychic powers to carry Yukio onto the bed, his arms in an "X" with the hands overlapping the shoulders. For Liza, the burning was time.

"Charla, Charizard, I believe that you don't want to do this," she gulped. "But I want you to use Flamethrower onto the body. He can't feel anymore pain." True, because he's no longer alive. Reluctantly, both dragons didn't want to burn him. However, if it was to burn away the evils which still carried in him, there was no choice. Both fired their Flamethrowers and burned the bed with Yukio. No flinch. No twitch. The kids watched helplessly as Yukio's body was charring.

"He knew my father," Cody teared. "I wish I knew him better." Clair knelt down and hugged the little Digidestined. She figured on the hardship of the youngest one. That's when Davis came by Ash with an idea.

"Hey, no pressure," he tried an early ease tactic. "But we need a motivational speech in order to focus on the task at hand." A motivational speech? On what? Ash needed a moment to come up with what he needed to say. Finally, he bobbed a head and walked to the burning body and bed, facing everyone.

"Boys and girls," he began. "This man did not die in vain. He died of betrayal. While his journey has ended doesn't mean our journeys have as well. What you see is the start of the new journey involving all of you. Most of you have been blessed with Pokémon that want to befriend you. But don't let them be the only ones to support you. You have friends to help you get up when you fall down. Whether you're from New York, Moscow, Sydney, Tokyo, maybe Blackthorn City or Pallet Town, there will be a friend there to help you. Yukio united all of us together. He's shown all of us that we're not alone. We are a new generation that can bond with the three worlds bonded together. You can be Pokémon trainers. You can be Digidestined." He paused as he realized that the impossible that he believed was now very likely. "Or you can be both. It was never realized until the gateway to the DigiWorld opened up back near Pallet Town. But now is not the time to reflect on the past. I bet we all have a future to look ahead on. And it starts when we leave the mountain." The kids were enthralled with Ash's speech. The Global Digidestined smiled at Ash to praise him for the standup work he performed. The kids, Clair and Liza applauded his talk. The sun was rising after the exhausting day. It was time for the kids to return home. This was a bit of a task.

"_**Okay, everyone,"**_ Imperialdramon called out. **_"It's time to get you back to your parents!" _**The kids lined up and prepared to get their rides back home. Imperialdramon loaded as many kids it could before Ash and Pikachu were loaded on as well. As soon as Imperialdramon left, Ken came after Yolei. It appeared as if something was on his mind.

"Yolei..." he called. Yolei turned to Ken's voice, a ponder of what he could be addressing.

"Ken, what's up?" she wondered. Ken began to sweat bullets. He was nervous.

"I...I know we've been through a lot in these past couple of months, being through thick and thin. As much as I don't wanna lose Davis as my DNA partner, I'd hate to lose you even more." It sounded like a proposal. Yolei was on Ken's ploy in a heartbeat.

"You want me to be your girlfriend, don't you?" Ken was a bit caught off-guard. He nervously laughed, trying to man-up. Yolei was caught in a bind. She liked Ash a lot ever since he kissed her. Now Ken's trying to express his love to her. She couldn't have one or the other, could she? Well, Ash didn't confess his love to her but Ken did.

"I realize that Ash has been a grand part of your life. I don't wanna take it away from you or him." This made it harder than before. Did she want the young man who risked life and limb to protect the innocent or the young man who was wiser and athletic? Giving to an impulse, Yolei hugged Ken with a tear trickling down her face.

"Yes. Yes, I'll be your girlfriend." Ken wrapped his arms around, embracing Yolei. Way to go, Ken. Let's get back to the lucked out Ash. The short flight to Pallet Town was only a minute. The Pokémon at Prof. Oak's ranch saw the Digimon and scattered in fear...except for a large blue bear who slept by a tree. Once landed, Ash escorted the kids over to the cave.

"This is where the DigiWorld is?" one boy questioned.

"Yep," Ash replied in a snap. "Through here is the world you wanted to see. But we'll wait until Imperialdramon brings the rest of the kids here." The kids were excited to see the DigiWorld for the first time as Imperialdramon soared back up and out of there.

"Is it alright if we come back here and see more Pokémon?" another boy stoically asked. Seeing Ash smile and hearing a chuckle was a sign that they would like.

"Absolutely. You're free to come back here whenever you want." The boy happily screeched. He sounded like he wanted to return to the Pokémon world after his stint back home. Before long, Imperialdramon returned with the rest of the kids and Global Digidestined. After this unloading, Imperialdramon reverted back to Wormmon and Veemon.

"I gotta tell ya," Veemon exhausted while grasping his head. "I'm just glad that this episode's over." The kids had a good chuckle out of that.

"Don't worry, Veemon," Davis comforted. "Once we get done with all of this, we'll be sleeping easily." No more danger to worry about. He turned to Ash, a great smile on his face. "What can I say than thanks for the aid." A pair of fist pumps collided between Ash and Davis.

"I think that's all that can be said," Ash joked. "So, what about getting the kids home when you go through the DigiWorld? BlackWarGreymon's seal's still active." This was a problem that had presented itself when MaloMyotismon mortally wounded BlackWarGreymon. Tai lofted a laugh, a problem that had a solution.

"We may not be able to access the DigiWorld from Odaiba," Tai agreed at first. "But we can access it from Tokyo, Mt. Fuji, Asa, you name it. These kids will be home for the New Year's." Satisfied, Ash felt more comfortable with the loophole that Tai found. "Now all that you need is a ride to Sinnoh, right?" Ash nodded. "I'm sure Yolei and Hawkmon can give you the ride over." He didn't need a ferry. Then again, Yolei seemed like she didn't need Ash.

"Well, I'll let Hawkmon carry him over," she offered. "But I'll be hanging out with Ken for sometime." After that proposal she accepted, the deal was set in stone. Ash was a bit shuttered with the news of Ken and Yolei being an item. Davis had his moment to console him...and ruin his dignity further.

"Oh, well," he smiled. "You can't win 'em all. I thought Yolei would be with you for sometime." At least he tried to be sympathetic.

"Don't worry about me too much," he replied. "All I need to worry about is the Sinnoh League." Davis and Tai believed him.

"Well, on behalf of all the Global Digidestined and Digimon," Tai expressed. "We hope you bring home the title from Sinnoh." Ash shook all the hands of the Digidestined. Kari, Maria and Mimi hugged Ash for the support. Once Hawkmon digivolved to Aquillamon, the Digidestined and the kids entered the cavern and left Pallet Town.

"Well, Ash," Aquillamon called out. "You ready to go?" He's been ready for a while. Now, there was no distraction.

"You bet," Ash answered as he boarded the giant bird. With a few flaps, Aquillamon flew away. Ash and Pikachu sailed off, ready to compete in the new league.

* * *

_(Months later...)_

It had been sometime since the battle on Mt. Quena. The battle against MaloMyotismon. Davis, Kari, Ken, Mimi and Yolei on Imperialdramon crossed the oceans to the Sinnoh Region. Thanks to a tip from Prof. Oak, Ash was on his way to Snowpoint City where Ash was going to compete against a girl named Candice. Snowpoint City was the northern most point in the region and as the name implied, the roads were covered in snow. Finding a clear patch of land, Imperialdramon descended to the ground. _**"Next stop: Snowpoint, Sinnoh!"**_ Imperialdramon joked. _**"Please take all your belongings with you as Digital Airlines will not be responsible for any lost or stolen valuables you happen to forget. We hope you-"**_

"Imperialdraon, cut it out!" Davis scorned. Imperialdramon was just joking.

"Lighten up, Davis," Kari scoffed. "Imperialdramon wanted some sort of humor." The group came out of the woods with their Digimon, including Veemon and Wormmon, where they were met by a redhead. She was wearing a brown vest over a maroon long-sleeved shirt and jeans.

"What was that, just now?" she wanted to know. She was curious about Imperialdramon. "I heard that there were sightings of creatures that weren't Pokémon a few months ago!" Guess she hadn't heard of Digimon yet...less these Digidestined.

"Calm down, miss," Ken tried to ease her tension. "There's a rational explanation for our arrival." Explaining Digimon has a rational point?

"You see, Prof. Oak told us that Ash was coming here," Yolei relied. That news hit the girl much to remember the name for some reason.

"Oh, yeah," she clicked with a smile. "There's a gym here which is run by Miss Senior. I guess this Prof. Oak told you that Ash already has six badges, huh?" It didn't sound like a lot but... "¾ of the way to the Sinnoh League." Nice.

"Nice to know that Ash is just as tough as ever," Gatomon huffed. That startled the young woman. She acted as if she never heard of a talking cat before, let alone that she's a Digimon. Yet, she recovered enough to retain composure.

"Well, he, Dawn and Brock should be here shortly. Hopefully, he can explain what's going on and who you guys are." But leave it to Mimi to spot something...or someone coming in from the horizon.

"I think that's him coming right now!" she shouted. Sure enough there were five figures. Two were easily recognizable: Ash and Pikachu. What about the other three? The other male was a tanned man with spiky brown hair. He wore a blue winter coat. The last was a blue-haired girl wearing a white wool cap and pink boots. She had a red trench-coat on her. In her arms was a blue penguin chick. The Digidestined and the other redhead waived the arrivals over to where and excited Ash dashed over to them.

"Kari, Mimi, Yolei!" he named the girls...minus the redhead. "Man, what are all of you doing here?"

("Hi, you guys!") Pikachu squeaked. The girls seemed happy to see Ash up and about.

"We've been bored since that battle a couple of months ago," Yolei huffed. "And we had some spare time so we thought of checking up on you." The DigiWorld was in check.

"So after we came through the tunnel," Veemon continued. "Prof. Oak was there to give us an update and we pursued it." After the whole conundrum of events since the Christmas season, the Digidestined and Ash have been closer friends. That's when Davis noticed the others who were with Ash.

"By the way, who's joined you on this go-around?" he asked. Ash wasn't startled with his new journeymen.

"Yeah, this here's my longtime partner in travel, Brock," he introduced, pointing to the tanned man. "And this time around, this is Zoey's rival, Dawn." Dawn came forward and extended a hand for a shake.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, everyone," she greeted. She had a chance to shake Kari's and Mimi's hands, as well as Ken's. Brock had his opportunity.

"So, what are your creatures that you have?" he wondered. "I'm sure Dawn and Zoey would want to know." The girls nodded to the question on hand. Ash decided to answer for the Digidestined.

"Brock, Dawn, Zoey," he called their attention. "These are Digimon. They reside in a different world which is connected to this world. They're not like Pokémon on so many aspects like the fact that they can talk and evolve on a whim." That's a couple of ways to look at it.

"That's cool," Zoey hushed. That's when Dawn approached Davis. What for?

"Well, you seem to be have a cool head on your shoulders," she cooed. Was she flirting with a Digidestined?

"Well, I am the leader of this rag-tag bunch with TK and Cody hanging out at Cerulean City," Davis nervously tried to stay comfortable. This was a new face on Davis. Kari and Yolei were dumbfounded with this interesting turn. "Uh, Ash? You wanna restrain her, please?" Ash could but he smirked. Something about this made Ash scoff.

"Didn't you say something about trying to find my secret on getting a girl?" he joked. He did, back in New York City.

"Yeah, but I didn't think it was this easy!"

"Oh, come on," she cooed. "I want to think we're the D&D meant to be-" She let out a huge scream. Everyone watched in confusion until she fell to the grip of a bluish frog with orange cheeks. Unable to move, the frog was easily able to discard the blue-haired girl.

"First time Croagunk used Poison Jab on someone else but you," Ash mentioned. There was a history of use with Croagunk? "I gotta make sure that I don't say anything to deserve that." Note taken, Kari and Ken nodded in agreement. Davis studied the moment with intent.

"I was kinda hoping that Kari would be my first love," he muttered. "Guess I should be proud of getting some sort." See? Look at the bright side. Better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all. Zoey came up and patted Davis on the shoulder.

"Beggars cannot really be choosers," she sympathized. "Now how about we head inside and have some hot cocoa?" All agreed and began to walk toward the warm shelter for everyone to warm up...but Ash looked up to the wintry sky. Pikachu joined with the rest for heat. Did something about the Digidestined showing up in Snowpoint City make him think that there was more than seeing him perform?

"Ash!" Mimi called out. Snapping out of delusions, Ash twisted to see Mimi and Palmon approach. "Listen, there's a reason we all came to see you and it wasn't just to see you win your seventh badge." Then, what?

"What is it?" Ash wondered.

"Well, the Global Digidestined have given a unanimous decision. We've nominated you to be the speaker of the Pokémon/Digimon peace corps with the option of choosing your office." This was quite a promotion. Ash was awe-struck.

"Wow. I-I don't know what to say." Mimi had a solution for it. A kiss. She got Ash on the lips...and in front of a recovered Dawn.

"What in the world are you doing?" she yelled out. Mimi and Ash broke and glared at her, wondering what her beef was.

"Dawn, what now?" Scowling, she stomped through the white powder to confront the Digidestined lip-locking with Ash.

"What purpose do you have making love to Ash?" She thought Mimi had no purpose in giving Ash a kiss. Then again, she did make an attempt on Davis.

"Look who's calling the shots?" Mimi taunted. "You went after Davis without knowing who he was." That made Dawn balk. She mulled at the fact that she made a move without a reason. The penguin seemed confused about it all.

"It's alright, Piplup," Palmon calmed the penguin. "Let's head inside for some hot chocolate." Piplup agreed and followed the plant Digimon to the rest. Ash was given a lot of responsibility with his new position of speaker of the peace corps among the Digimon and Pokémon. He had a lot of options to arraign a lineup for his office should he relax and try to help either worlds. For right now, impressing the Digidestined in getting closer to the league was his first priority. He'll think about his position another time.

* * *

THE END...


End file.
